In 2020 I was going to speak at a couple of @scbwi conferences. I was beyond excited… Thrilled. • I LOVE conferences and workshops. I’ve been to many over the years. I love traveling, learning, meeting people, and chatting about books and art. But I also love teaching, so I was thrilled when I was invited to be a speaker. And then COVID happened. • The conferences were postponed and were moved online. I’m not going to lie, I was disappointed. • A week ago I gave my last talk of the year and it was hard. Getting into “teaching mindset” (at home, in the middle of the afternoon, with baby in the next room) was very difficult for me. But I did it, because I CAN DO HARD THINGS. • I loved the suggestion of posting encouraging feedback to your past self for #peptober - so here is mine. This is FOR ME, but I hope it helps you too. • You can manage your expectations. You can allow your disappointments (yes, even if they are small in the big scheme of things). You can adapt. You can ask for kindness (luckily for you, children’s book people are an empathetic bunch). You can show up. And you can do your best. • Thanks @scbwisf and @oregonscbwi for trusting me. Thanks to all the attendees who let me know that they loved my presentations. I’m looking forward to seeing all of you in the future. In person next time! • First photo from my presentation at @litquake (KIDQUAKE) in 2019. — Thanks @jilanne2694 Second image from my online presentation last Saturday.— Thanks @nadiasalomon.author for the shot! • #dianatoledano #scbwiconference #arteducator #illustrationteacher https://www.instagram.com/p/CVn22pwv6fm/?utm_medium=tumblr
