? I first met Waldorf in July, 20 12. The child is about to enter kindergarten, and my husband searched a lot of educational information online. Because he is a public school teacher himself, he deeply understands that traditional education has many defects and regrets. I hope my children can have a good educational environment and ideas. By chance, my husband learned about Waldorf education on the Internet. In July of that year, he attended the first teacher training in Chengdu Waldorf School at his own expense. Everything has changed since I came back. My husband was completely attracted by Waldorf's educational philosophy and grand blueprint, and felt that this was the ideal education he had been pursuing for many years. At that time, Chengdu Waldorf School was preparing to build a high school. My husband told me that he would quit his job in Shenzhen and go to Chengdu Waldorf to participate in the preparation of a high school. Trying to persuade me to quit my job and go with him. At that time, we had been working in Shenzhen for many years. He is a teacher in a key prestigious school, and I am a nurse in a "top three" hospital, both of which are "iron rice bowls" of institutions. I bought a house in Shenzhen, and everyone earns more than 10 thousand a month. Although life is neither rich nor expensive, it is stable and slightly surplus. So I decided not to support his idea. We have had many quarrels for this. In the meantime, my husband showed me some Waldorf educational books and tried to convince me. We also visited Chengdu Waldorf School. But because I lost my mother when I was a child, I felt insecure. So if I want to give up my stable working life for many years and start a new life and career in a strange place, I am very scared and reluctant.
? But my husband is a very independent and thoughtful person, and I can't stop what he has decided to do. The differences between the two of us on this matter have caused us a peaceful life and caused great waves. Whenever we talk about this topic, we will quarrel. Later I tried to avoid discussing this topic with my husband. But many things seem to be destiny takes a hand. At the beginning of 20 12, 12, I found that I was pregnant with a second child unexpectedly. At that time, the second child policy was not liberalized. If I wanted to keep my children, I had to resign, which was another dilemma for me at that time. After a fierce ideological struggle, I decided to quit my job and have children. Looking back now, the arrival of the second child was the decisive factor that made me resolutely decide to resign and embark on the road of Waldorf. The unexpected arrival of the child made us re-plan our future life.
? 20 12 12 at the end of February, shortly after I was pregnant with my second child, my family went to visit the lotus garden, which was the first time I saw the lotus. It's still a small yard, with flowers and trees in full bloom. At that time, I was given the impression that "the kindergarten environment is good, completely different from ordinary traditional kindergartens, a bit like farmhouse music". But because of the inconvenient transportation and I didn't know Waldorf very well at that time, I thought twice and didn't send my boss to school.
? Later, my husband decided to go to rudolf steiner College in California, an American anthropological community, to take a teacher training course at Waldorf Elementary School, and also attended a teacher training course at Waldorf High School during the holidays. So I took the TOEFL, applied to the school, and went to the American consulate for an interview ... everything went well. At the end of June 20 13, our family set foot on the road of studying in the United States. At that time, my daughter had been in my stomach for more than seven months, and we crossed the ocean and came to a strange land. Soon after, my daughter was born smoothly. Before we had much time to adapt to the new environment, we began a busy and intense study career. My husband studies both primary and high school courses, often working overtime, staying up late to prepare lessons, reviewing notes and looking for information ... and I have to take care of a starving baby and a three-year-old son who just went to kindergarten. The challenge here is enormous, and although the process is arduous, it has also gained a lot. Today, it is really an unusual life experience to look back on these days in America. Fully exercised our family's ability to adapt to the environment and the willpower to challenge difficulties. During my stay in the United States, I lived a full life, personally lived in the anthropology community, went to my husband's and children's schools again and again to attend various Waldorf festivals and celebrations, and saw Waldorf teachers exude wisdom, composure and kindness. Children are happy at school, free to explore and study, close to nature, warm and loving, quiet environment and healthy biodynamic farm, which makes me understand what Waldorf education is again. More personal experiences than written in the book. That is, this experience finally made me understand why my husband gave up his stable job and embarked on this hard and constant pursuit of self-growth. This experience also made me re-recognize myself and reorient my life. "Who am I? What is my mission in life? " I have never thought about these questions before, and I have been thinking and asking myself these years in the United States. To outsiders, including my father and my brothers and sisters, they all feel sorry for us and think that we should not give up our superior living conditions and work hard in the unknown world. But we have no regrets. We have stepped out of the quiet life of "as still as water, looking to the end at a glance" and embarked on an educational road of constantly pursuing self-growth and bravely climbing the peak. It is this experience that rewrites the chapter of our lives.
? At the end of 20 16, my husband completed the teacher training course in Waldorf and worked as a math teacher in a Waldorf high school in the United States for a while. After a long time of thinking, we decided to return to China for development. At that time, my husband originally planned to go back to work in waldorf, Nanshan. Our first stop after returning to China was to visit Nanshan Waldorf School. Although the teachers and parents of Nanshan Waldorf are very enthusiastic to welcome us to join. But at that time, the smog in Beijing was extremely serious and the weather was very cold and dry. Having lived in the south for many years, it is difficult for us to adapt to such a climate. Everyone in the family fell ill with a cold and fever, and they didn't get well for ten days, especially the smog in the air made us cough all night. At this time, the gentle teacher of the lotus garden also extended an olive branch to our family and invited us to join the lotus garden very sincerely. At that time, I wanted to build a Waldorf high school in the former residence of General Ye Ting in Huiyang. My husband, whose surname is Ye, is also a Hakka, which aroused his interest. Perhaps it was because Shenzhen was our second hometown at that time, we lived here for many years, and our relatives were also in Guangdong. Maybe it's because we are moved by the gentle and sincere invitation, or maybe we are destined to have a relationship with Lian Xin. Although the Lotus Garden was not a mature Waldorf school at that time, we chose to join the Lotus Garden. I still remember returning from the cold Beijing to the warm Shenzhen. At that time, teacher Rourou arranged for us to stay in Shenzhen-Hong Kong Flower Center temporarily. At that time, it was near the Spring Festival, and the world of flowers was full of flowers and colors, and the weather was very warm and comfortable. Our cold and cough will soon be over. At that time, I was full of longing and hope for a new life.
? After the school started in February 20 17, our family officially joined the lotus garden. My husband and son went to primary school, and my daughter and I came to kindergarten, where I worked as a school doctor and an assistant director. At that time, the kindergarten moved to a small house in G03 of Shenzhen-Hong Kong Flower Center for some reasons. The yard is small and the conditions are very difficult. Fortunately, three months later, around the beginning of May, we moved back to our big yard to study and work.
? The first thing I encountered after returning to Lotus Seed was the housing problem. When we went abroad, we sold our house in Shenzhen because we were in urgent need of a study and living fund. However, in just a few years after going abroad, the housing price in Shenzhen has risen several times, and it is also expensive to rent a place with a better environment in Xili. When school started, we were anxious to settle down. In desperation, we rented an apartment near the school, which was not too expensive. At that time, near the road of Shahe West Road, the surrounding traffic was bustling and full of people. This is far from the quiet and natural environment in the United States.
? However, bigger challenges are waiting for us. This year, the school rented the site where the Blue Rock Sports Ground was located because it had to participate in the qualification evaluation of the Education Bureau, and it had to pay a monthly rent of more than 654.38+10,000 yuan. The school is in financial crisis, and the salaries of primary school teachers are almost impossible to pay.
? At the same time, because of some turmoil in the school and society, several major class teachers have left the school. My husband took over the position of head teacher halfway. At that time, shortly after he returned to China, he had no deep contact with the children, and class management was very difficult. Moreover, the great contrast between ideal and reality made him very depressed and insomnia. "the house leaks and it rains all night." At the end of that year, my husband had an accident while playing basketball with students at school. One eye suffered retinal injury, half of which fell off, and was hospitalized for surgery.
? During that time, the school and our family were the darkest period. I remember when teacher Rourou visited us in the ward, she said that 40 years old is the darkest period of life, and after crossing this darkness, she will usher in vitality. Teacher Rourou said that she had walked out of the darkness herself. At that most difficult time, some founders of Waldorf School took the initiative to contact my husband, hoping that he would work in the past and give him a generous salary. I also tried to ask my husband, why don't we change schools? It's too difficult here, and it's too different from our expected life in China. But my husband firmly said that if he took over the head teacher of this class halfway, he must take responsibility and bring up these children. It is not easy for children to change the head teacher. Besides, I remember what he said. He said: "Have we ever thought about what we can do for this school to make it better from bad, instead of turning away when we feel bad?" Perhaps there is not a perfect Waldorf School in China, and everyone is making progress through exploration. "Yes, in the most difficult and darkest moment, we chose to stay and stick to it.
Later, the school took a turn for the better. Teacher Rourou visited Tencent executives many times and set up the Lotus Heart Charity Foundation to receive donations from people who support innovative education in the society. The financial crisis has been solved and the school is out of the Woods. And my husband's eye surgery is also very successful. After a year's hard work, he has established good contact with the children in the class, and his teaching and management ability has also been recognized by his parents. His own depression and insomnia have gradually adjusted. It exudes new vitality and strength from the inside out. At that time, we really had a feeling of crossing the valley of death. After that, the school successfully passed the evaluation of the Education Bureau, and the children in the new grade Earth class also became the class with the largest number of children in the school.
? I once chatted with brother Wu in the kitchen. He stayed in Lian Xin for eight years and persisted. He said that after so many years, many people left and many new people came. Schools face new challenges and crises every year, but the original intention of "education makes life" has not changed. We have come out of the crisis again and again and ushered in vitality. During this period, many teachers and parents worked hard. Teacher Rourou has been here for ten years.
? Today, lotus seeds celebrate 10 birthday. From a baby to a handsome boy, the road ahead is still full of challenges and difficulties. "Looking back and looking forward to the future, Do not forget your initiative mind", let's continue to work together for the next decade in Lian Xin, and wish Lian Xin a more stable and wonderful next decade and a better school tomorrow!