A New Beginning

EmBARKing on something new...

Well tomorrow starts a new leg of MY journey. It’s kind of ironic being on this side of the fence, a student? Wow, I forgot about all the excitement and anxiety I felt before the first day of class. This is a new beginning for me and I’m off to a good start.

I’m still on the assistance end of the fence too. One leg hanging over the assistants’ side, one leg dangling over the newcomers side as a student. Can one be split in two and carry both, walking the fine line of student, assistant? Can I straddle the fence for the duration of the course? I know me, all to well. I am a mentor at heart so will I cross the line and help when I’m supposed to be a student in the learning mode?

I’m looking forward to the class with new expectancy. I won’t be sidetracked with the others immature behavior, I’d like to stay on track and be the professional that I’ve become over the years. The NEW site actually has THREE tabs to click, HOME, WORK, PLAY. Just as the tabs say, one is HOME, where info, rules and guidelines are. WORK, is where the classrooms are, FAQ’s and a Café! And PLAY is where you can play on a facebook style social wall.

As with EVERY session, people enter the site, never read the FAQ’s, and ask, “Where is my classroom?” I do understand that newcomers are new to the site and many times new to the writing world, but it seems to me, you’d look around and read all the pertinent information FIRST. It is where you’d find out 1) classrooms are not open yet and will be assigned when the course begins. 2) Where the profile pages are and how to go about getting an avatar. (google images) 3) That just by registering for the site, registers you for the course!

F2k has two sites. The old ugly brown beige looking one (on my screen), and the NEW site which is a light gray, clean-shaven looking page! People are sent an invite weeks before hand with a link to the new course beginning, and still people enter the OLD site, asking where the classrooms are and when do they begin. On that social wall, there is the link, over and over, to register for the new site, and yes it automatically registers you for the class. But you still get, on the new site, “where are the classrooms.”

A funny lot, inquisitive writers are. It’s as if they jump, without looking to see if there is a safe landing spot beneath them first. Jump into the water, without the curiosity of possible sharks wandering around? Really? Jump in, I say, the water is nice and warm, read first all you can, THEN ask a question that might not have been covered.

As I embark on this new phase, I have harpooned the sharks. I have made new friends and have met up with some dear old ones, that are true. I’ve learned an awful lot this year that has flew by and one thing I will never forget is that, you can always begin again. It’s like Tolkien said, There and Back again. But you knew that, right? Because you read Lord of the Rings? READ before jumping. Begin a new phase, not with blinders on, but with WINGS wide open!!!