As I continue to grow professionally, I wonder about the direction I am taking. A few years ago, I was encouraged by colleagues to pursue a leadership role in education. Though that seed had been planted early on in my teaching career, my continuing my education and raising a family of four children were in conflict. Because of changes in my personal life, I finally have been able to return to graduate school. There I have found the group of "select others" my soul had been seeking! I was introduced to the ideas of a feminine way of knowing and leading, which resounded so clearly within me. I found I shared many of my feelings and experiences with other women. The affirmation I sought, without really understanding it, was discovered through the guidance of a very special professor. she shared a book by Mary Catherine Bateeon with us. Here I found the words I had been searching for:

Unless teachers can hold up a model of lifelong learning and adaptation, graduates are likely to find themselves trapped in obsolescence as the world changes around them. Of any stopping place in life, it is good to ask whether it will be a good place from which to go on as well as a good place to remain. (Bateeon, 1990, p. 14)

As I unveiled new ideas through reading and discussion in her classes, I found opportunities to discuss my new-found knowledge with our school district’s assistant superintendent, a woman who has become such an inspiration and friend. Dialoguing with her and forming my own beliefs about the field of educational administration and the professional field of teaching has been a fulfilling experience personally, as well as professionally. Realizing the vision and the patience this woman has exhibited toward us, her colleagues, as we slowly "get on board" has been a real revelation to me. Her willingness to discuss new ideas, to encourage my leadership qualities, and to challenge my thinking has been a blessing. Through my relationship with her, and those with my graduate school peers and professors, I am finding real exhilaration! I know from discussions with my peers that this is not the norm. I have found two women in leadership positions willing to guide me and encourage me. I see this phenomenon as another way that God has blessed my life. My faith in Hio journey for me has placed me in the right places at the right times. I have been encouraged and enabled to reach out. I have made connections that are beneficial to my growth, as well as to the growth of those