I had a phone conversation with my Mum tonight. I explained to her that I felt a failure because of my inability to get myself a teaching job. It’s crazy really because I have fallen into the best job I’ve ever had by sheer accident and yet, despite working in an area where I could be considered an expert, I’ve had a gut wrench today to discover that I’m going to work in a school on Monday for the first time since the summer and one of the teachers there is one of my peers from my teacher training. I told Mum that it still hurts every time one of my teacher facebook friends gets a job in teaching. (Obviously I am delighted for my friends of course – just because I failed doesn’t mean I don’t wish them all the success in the world.)

The stupid thing is that I think what I have is so much more right for me. I’ve been able to find a way of making a positive contribution really quickly – I’ve only been in the job a couple of weeks yet in many ways I feel as though I’ve been there forever.

Reminder to self: you have a value. What you are doing is a beautiful thing. The place you are working is lovely. You are an expert in your field. You could have been floundering around in the dark trying to work out how to teach but instead you’re using the skills and expertise built during a career that has already spanned more than 30 years of your hard work and fortitude.

No, stop the fretting Linda, let the teaching go…you've got a new life now and it's fate - the right thing at the right moment. Perhaps it's like kissing frogs?