Teaching can be strangely lonely. You may spend all day surrounded by people and still feel like you are carrying it by yourself. You were never meant to. A colleague who understands the particular weight of this work, a friend who makes you laugh, a mentor who has been there, these are part of how you stay whole.

Let yourself lean. Share the hard week instead of hiding it. Ask the question you think you should already know. Accept the help that is offered, and offer yours in return. You are so often the helper; let yourself also be held. A small circle of people who understand can refill what no amount of solitary effort can, and it reminds you, on the heaviest days, that you are not alone in this.