When you are serious about self-examination for the purpose of understanding your beliefs and social philosophies, you will find that associating with certain selected others is not only personally fulfilling but growth enhancing. If these others share beliefs in living a democratic life, they will exhibit a generous spirit and respect toward others while they accept responsibility for their own personal growth and development.

In your communities and schools, there will be those who love what they have chosen as their life's work, who are in a continuous act of becoming, and who never cease to reflect, to question, and to learn. They will be a support for you as you become the kind of person you desire to he and as you do the kind of work you have chosen to do. Linda helped Sue to realize that there really were others in schools who shared her beliefs and values and who also were longing to associate with a group of like-minded others.

Teaching professionals coming together in this way has not been the norm. Planning a field trip, organizing a bake sale, deciding when to schedule special subjects or recess have traditionally been the subject for teachers' problem solving together. Living the democratic life in and out of the classroom, however, requires educators to come together around subjects of significance. It requires digging beneath the impersonal, the technical, and the superficial to create and sustain dialogue around our inner lives, around meaning and authenticity that must be central in teaching and learning, and around issues that are of deeper significance, such as those concerning equity, diversity, and community.

As teachers new to the profession, you will have to explore your surrounding landscape to find other individuals who might support your efforts yet challenge you to continue to develop, to clarify, and to refine your beliefs and values. They may be found participating in professional study groups, book clubs, Friday lunch groups, and action research teams. Your trusted guide may know where to find them. They may not be at your own school but may be found where you volunteer or worship. Wherever they are, they are those individuals who seem to work from the heart, who demonstrate a soulfulness, and who exhibit a real passion for life itself.