A “No” uttered from deepest conviction is better and greater than a “Yes” merely uttered to please, or what is worse, to avoid trouble.
– Mahatma Gandhi (Young India, vol #9: Mar. 17, 1927)
There was no match for our 2013 Australian teacher exchange application. While the program didn’t make a match, that wasn’t the end of the story. It is possible for unmatched applicants to connect on their own and propose an exchange through their respective programs provided all program criteria are met. (All applicants must receive approval from their administrator and school board, and appropriate paperwork completed and accepted by the provincial / state coordinator program.)
Posting on various blogs and education-based discussion boards, we connected with an Australian teacher in a similar situation and seeing our qualifications matched, began corresponding. Now, the prospect of a real exchange, talking with a person with whom you may “swap lives” for a year really ramps up the excitement. Nevertheless, we also understood that a year is a long time, and that we all have ideas for how we want the exchange year to unfold: places to see, things to do, the kind of school and community in which we’d like to work and live. Reasonable flexibility increases the likelihood of an exchange, but there will be things that just don’t work for one partner or the other.
I heard of a young teacher offered an exchange to a remote part of Australia deep in the outback. Part of her exchange included “taking care of the goats”. The exchange coordinator encouraged her to pass on that and wait for something closer to what she wanted.
So it was with this particular teacher and me. We openly shared information, had the courage to ask hard questions, and respected each others’ desires for the exchange. My own unique mix of urban working and rural living didn’t fit with her big-city vision for the exchange. So, while our qualifications matched, the big pictures didn’t, and exchanging simply for the sake of the exchange is not likely to suit anyone. We came away disappointed, but confident it was the right decision, and we remain hopeful for the next year.
So, we wish each other well, prepare our applications for the coming search season and wait patiently for another opportunity that better suits both us and potential exchange partners. With luck, our paths will cross in 2014 as we wing our way to Australia and wave to her in a plane en route to Canada.
