That's It, I'm Done

I already retired once in 2020 just as Covid began. I announced it on the day before Spring Break, and honestly, didn’t regret that decision at all. It was the last time I set foot in any building as a principal. That measured 23 years in administration, plus one as an associate principal. 

For the last four and a half years, I worked part time. First, I was a long-term substitute for a third grade class who didn’t have a teacher. It was as a favor to a principal friend of mine, and I have to say it was a genuinely refreshing and wonderful experience. When they hired a teacher, it was not even a week when I received a call from another principal friend who asked me to be their online learning facilitator. I served in that capacity for about one and a half years, and again, I loved it. 

For the past two years, I was able to use my counseling skills at the same school where my wife worked. That brought me full circle. I met Kim when we both landed at a high school in California. We dated, married, adopted a son, and gave birth to two girls. And it also brought me completely back to where I first did my student teaching as an undergrad in 1976, which was in a middle school. 

These past two years as a counselor also reminded me how much I loved counseling. In retrospect, if I had to do it all over again, knowing now what I didn’t know then, I would have never left counseling and would never have gone into administration. I believe I was a much, much better counselor than I was a principal. But all said and done through the many past years in education, I learned quite a bit about myself and about education from each position I held. I enjoyed the kids the most, the administrative teams I worked with and to whom I was responsible, and many of the teachers and parents who came across the entry doors. 

I am still in touch with many of the friends I met in these past 49 years. Kids at all levels, now young adults, some with families of their own, and even some who have retired, still call me a friend. Currently, I work in a school with several of my former students. At the beginning of the year, one of them- a newly hired English teacher, asked the principal what he should call me. He explained he had me as a principal, and he didn’t know if he should call me Mr. Lewis or Joe. It’s funny, he doesn’t call me by any title, so I think he’s still uncomfortable with all of it.

I have fond memories, some regrets, but I dwell mostly on what I was able to accomplish and the lives I touched along the way. And how my life was touched by all who entered it. 

As a coach, winning a state title with a super athletic group of hard-working kids was a highlight. Being asked to stand up in one young man’s wedding, and then a year later, being asked if I would be his son’s godfather is something I’ll never forget. Visiting a young man in a hospital after he got beaten out of a gang. For him, it was the lesser of two evils, the other being put to death. He ended up being the first male in his family to graduate from high school and go to college. As time passed, we lost track of each other, but I still think of him. 

Another young man as a middle schooler, Khalid, came home from school one day and found his grandmother dead on the kitchen floor after a heart attack. The summer before his freshman year in high school, he then moved into his father’s and stepmother’s home. Neither wanted him. Khalid had to sleep on a couch or on the floor in a cramped apartment. Even though I was his counselor for four years, I had no knowledge of this until years later, when he told the story while visiting my wife, and our two daughters, and me. He went to college on a football and academic scholarship, and has since become a counselor and is now a high school principal. 

As a counselor, I helped pick up the pieces after a troubled young man committed suicide while on the phone with his best friend. This young man thanked his friend for all he did, and then shot himself with his father’s rifle. It was a tough week or two for many, but especially for the friend who received the phone call and heard the gunshot. 

As a principal, I had to help plan a celebration of life ceremony for two popular senior students killed when a train struck their vehicle. For a small school whose students knew everyone, it was a tough spring. At a more recent school, we held a special graduation for a young man dying of brain cancer. Not a year later, he passed away peacefully.

But there were many more positive and heartwarming stories than sad ones, thankfully.

Keith, a quiet kid in the first school where I taught and coached in Wyoming, asked me one day if I liked duck. I told him I didn’t think I ever ate one. The next day, I came home to a crock pot on my porch with a handwritten note to return the crock pot when I was done with it. There was a family who took me as their own, knowing I was many miles away from my own family. Countless Sunday dinners, and a Christmas Eve, and they even hired me to work on their ranch during the summer months. I’ll save the story for how that turned out for a later post.

And it was through education where I met Kim and then got married and had three children. When our son, Wil, was shot and killed, I can’t possibly express the appreciation for how our schools embraced us, comforted us, and protected us. I still don’t know how I managed, and my girls and Kim and I still speak of how the school year of 2014-2015 was a blur. We really have little of memories of how we survived and made it through. For me, I had a wonderful administrative team, especially Harry Johnston and Wes Bergazzi, who checked in with me often, and a teaching staff who looked out for both our youngest, Emily, and me.

I sit at my desk as I pound these keys. I’m age 71 now, and reflecting on the 49 years I spent in education, I have to say, I don’t regret it. It has been a wonderful career, and more importantly, a good life … so far. June 12^th is the last day of my day to day work. I might substitute for administrators on leave or when there is a need. I might substitute as a counselor if a need arises. But I am done with the day to day life as a teacher, coach, counselor, and administrator. 

A huge thank you to all who helped shape me, who took the time to correct me, guide me, encourage me, and mentor me. I know I never had all the answers and relied on so many who were and are smarter than I’ll ever be. Through it all, I have been blessed, and I continue to be blessed, and my life is full. I hope, at least in some small measure, I added something positive to the lives who came in contact with me.

Thanks for your service to kids, and thank you for being with me and, when needed, for propping me up on this journey. Without you, I would have been lost. Something to think about …

Live Your Life, and Make A Difference!

For My Readers:   

If you like what you’re reading and find a benefit from it, you can check out my other posts on my Website at https://www.jrlewisauthor.com under the Inspirational Blog tab. You can find all ten books, their descriptions, and links for purchase at the same site.  

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This past Monday, I was a guest on a podcast, Horizons Author Lounge, with Dr. Rhonda Lawson. As soon as I receive a link to the recording of the 30 minute show, I will post it on my social media.

Saturday, May 24^th from 9:30 to 11:30 AM I will take part in a Local Authors Festival. It takes place at the Central Rappahannock Regional Library Salem Church Branch, at 2607 Salem Church Road, Fredericksburg, Virginia. If you are in the area, I’d love for you to stop by. I’ll have all ten of my books for sale and signing.

A week or two ago, I discovered good news on two of my books. Black Yéʼii received a 2025 Maxy Finalist Award for Thriller and Suspense. It previously won a Literary Titan Gold Book Award. It is available in Paperback and on Kindle and is currently being made into an Audible format. You can find Black Yéʼii here:

Amazon Link: https://tinyurl.com/25w95xcn

Barnes & Noble Link: https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/black-y-700-ii-joseph-lewis/1146257565?ean=9781685135379 

If you want more of the backstory to Black Yéʼii (The Evil One) check out my previous book, Caught in a Web, which is available in paperback, Kindle, and Audible. BestThrillers called it “One of the best Crime Fiction Books of 2018!” It was also a PenCraft Literary Award Winner! You can find it here:

Amazon Link: https://amzn.to/2GrU51T

Barnes & Noble Link: https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/caught-in-a-web-joseph-lewis/1128250923?ean=9781684330249

I also found out that Fan Mail won a 2023 Maxy Finalist for Action and Adventure. It previously won a 2023 Reader’s Favorite Silver Book Award. It is available in Audible format, as well as Paperback and Kindle. You can find it here: 

Audible Link: https://audiobooksunleashed.com/product/fan-mail/ 

Amazon Link: https://amzn.to/3eNgSdS

Barnes & Noble Link: https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/fan-mail-joseph-lewis/1142543281?ean=9781685131685

Of course, you can find all my books, their descriptions, and a pay link on my author website at https://www.jrlewisauthor.com

Photo courtesy of Joseph Lewis