Robert walked into my life after a series of unfortunate events that resulted in the assistant principal at that time leaving Colinas. When I was first told of this move, I was told by the HR director that they all thought that I'd like him. She said we had a lot in common. At the time, I couldn't possibly see how a 6'7 secondary school guy from Los Alamos could have in common with me, but at that point in time, I was just happy to have someone that could at least smile at me and be professional. I figured that he would come in the morning to Colinas, get the heck back to work on Cleveland in the afternoon, and that he would be back in the land of tall students by spring.
I was wrong.
From the start, Robert was able to do two things at Colinas: He both pleased and terrified people. Some teachers were terrified of him because of their past post traumatic experiences with other administrators, and some were just scared because he was so tall. A few begged me at first to make sure that I was their evaluator. The students really liked him..although he did have a way of using his voice and his height to get his point across. He can bellow better than anyone I know..ask any student at Colinas who was trying to do the 50 mile dash in 1.3 seconds across the courtyard. And he had a name for almost everyone. One of our teachers who somehow set her car on fire became "Mrs. Sparky". And the first union representative we both had at Colinas always had the fun of hearing him say, "Watch out, union rep!" as she walked by us. Our Site Specialist was called "The Princess". I will say he didn't have a name for me..at least one he said out loud. :)
Around Christmas of that first year, Robert decided that he would like to remain at Colinas instead of going to the hip and trendy Cleveland. I was absolutely amazed. But, there were several factors that entered into his decision. First, there was his daughter, Kaley. She was in third grade when Robert started working at Colinas. This way, he could see her daily..which was a huge bonus for him..and for her. He is an excellent dad. He has a great balance between soft and hard..he cares deeply about his children, but he makes sure they do what they are supposed to do, and stands firm until they do it..which is uncommon sometimes in this day and time. Secondly, he wasn't quite sure if Cleveland would open on time, and it's kind of nice to have a job. Finally, I think he kinda liked all of us.
Robert was (and still is) really good at listening, observing, and asking questions. And he did all three a lot. At first, he didn't know what the heck a guided reading lesson was, and most likely had never used the phrase, "developmentally appropriate". But he watched, and asked a lot of questions, and then asked again when things still didn't make sense to him. And he learned, pretty quickly, I might add. And sometimes would make some observations that my little elementary brain had never thought about before. It was fun to watch him come back from a classroom and talk about all that he had seen, and how much he kinda enjoyed getting what the elementary world was like.
Then there was the "Book of Abney". Robert didn't call it that, but it quickly became my phrase for this little book that he carries with him, in which he writes quotes that mean something to him, words of wisdom, and just thoughts about the world in general. And he was really good about pulling The Book of Abney out, and relaying something I might be rolling my eyes at, but really made good sense for what was happening to me, or the school, or to someone at the moment. He is kind of Yoda like, in a tall, not looking like a Yoda way. What he says usually makes sense.
When you work with someone in a position where a lot of trust and a lot of things of a confidential nature is a given, it's tricky. But Robert and I kind of fit, and balanced each other. I could give him grief, and he would know I'd have his best interests at heart, and he would do the same. There wasn't a moment where I didn't know that he felt about school in general the same way I did. If we put the students first in all decisions, the rest (as hard as it could be at times) would fall into place. And they usually did. We were both honest with each other, and I knew that I could always trust him, and felt that he trusted me.
And then there was his sense of humor. I'm a bit of a goofy dork, and Robert has a great sense of humor that really delighted most people. As Robert would say (From the Book of Abney, Chapter 3) "If you can't have fun at work..it's just work". The fact that we could laugh and find humor in all the chaos that was swirling around us was a bonus. You know, sometimes laughing is all you can do.
It's hard to believe, but we've worked together for four years. And I knew that Robert was more than ready for his own school...except if you ask almost any student at Colinas, they thought he was the "real' principal anyway. You know, being tall and a man equates being more in charge. And that is really what I told people..we both are principals. We were a team.
Robert did suffer some disappointments in his quest to have his own school, and although he was Mr. "CrabbyMcCrabber pants", he did (kind of ) listen when I told him that things were work out when they should. Cause he always told me that. Although I will say he didn't like much having one of his quotes thrown back at him.
And finally, the time was right. He was selected to be the principal at an elementary school in Albuquerque. I am thrilled for him, because it is something that he has wanted and deserved for some time. And he will be great. Our media specialist stopped me when she heard the news and very aptly said, "I know you will miss your tall backbone". That is what he was for me. There is a part of me that finds it hard to comprehend how I will step in the front door of Colinas on Monday morning, knowing he won't be there. But I will...and he will walk into his new school..and we all will be fine.
Cause as we can both tell you, things always work out as they should. Thanks for everything, Robert.
Around Christmas of that first year, Robert decided that he would like to remain at Colinas instead of going to the hip and trendy Cleveland. I was absolutely amazed. But, there were several factors that entered into his decision. First, there was his daughter, Kaley. She was in third grade when Robert started working at Colinas. This way, he could see her daily..which was a huge bonus for him..and for her. He is an excellent dad. He has a great balance between soft and hard..he cares deeply about his children, but he makes sure they do what they are supposed to do, and stands firm until they do it..which is uncommon sometimes in this day and time. Secondly, he wasn't quite sure if Cleveland would open on time, and it's kind of nice to have a job. Finally, I think he kinda liked all of us.
Robert was (and still is) really good at listening, observing, and asking questions. And he did all three a lot. At first, he didn't know what the heck a guided reading lesson was, and most likely had never used the phrase, "developmentally appropriate". But he watched, and asked a lot of questions, and then asked again when things still didn't make sense to him. And he learned, pretty quickly, I might add. And sometimes would make some observations that my little elementary brain had never thought about before. It was fun to watch him come back from a classroom and talk about all that he had seen, and how much he kinda enjoyed getting what the elementary world was like.
Then there was the "Book of Abney". Robert didn't call it that, but it quickly became my phrase for this little book that he carries with him, in which he writes quotes that mean something to him, words of wisdom, and just thoughts about the world in general. And he was really good about pulling The Book of Abney out, and relaying something I might be rolling my eyes at, but really made good sense for what was happening to me, or the school, or to someone at the moment. He is kind of Yoda like, in a tall, not looking like a Yoda way. What he says usually makes sense.
When you work with someone in a position where a lot of trust and a lot of things of a confidential nature is a given, it's tricky. But Robert and I kind of fit, and balanced each other. I could give him grief, and he would know I'd have his best interests at heart, and he would do the same. There wasn't a moment where I didn't know that he felt about school in general the same way I did. If we put the students first in all decisions, the rest (as hard as it could be at times) would fall into place. And they usually did. We were both honest with each other, and I knew that I could always trust him, and felt that he trusted me.
And then there was his sense of humor. I'm a bit of a goofy dork, and Robert has a great sense of humor that really delighted most people. As Robert would say (From the Book of Abney, Chapter 3) "If you can't have fun at work..it's just work". The fact that we could laugh and find humor in all the chaos that was swirling around us was a bonus. You know, sometimes laughing is all you can do.
It's hard to believe, but we've worked together for four years. And I knew that Robert was more than ready for his own school...except if you ask almost any student at Colinas, they thought he was the "real' principal anyway. You know, being tall and a man equates being more in charge. And that is really what I told people..we both are principals. We were a team.
Robert did suffer some disappointments in his quest to have his own school, and although he was Mr. "CrabbyMcCrabber pants", he did (kind of ) listen when I told him that things were work out when they should. Cause he always told me that. Although I will say he didn't like much having one of his quotes thrown back at him.
And finally, the time was right. He was selected to be the principal at an elementary school in Albuquerque. I am thrilled for him, because it is something that he has wanted and deserved for some time. And he will be great. Our media specialist stopped me when she heard the news and very aptly said, "I know you will miss your tall backbone". That is what he was for me. There is a part of me that finds it hard to comprehend how I will step in the front door of Colinas on Monday morning, knowing he won't be there. But I will...and he will walk into his new school..and we all will be fine.
Cause as we can both tell you, things always work out as they should. Thanks for everything, Robert.
I don't know how I never saw this before but it's timely now to read and appreciate. He loves you, Ms. Moore. And he loves his Colinas family. You are HIS backbone. Thank you all for what you've done for him in the past and the support you've given him presently.
ReplyDeleteAlicia (Mrs. Book of) Abney