INSPIRATION STATION

Inspired By

Included in this look: Bodysuit | Abercrombie & Fitch (205 North Garden), Satin Skirt | Abercrombie & Fitch (205 North Garden), Adidas Sneakers | Journey's (154 North Garden)

First-grade teacher and book blogger Sadie Longren came from a family of educators, and has wanted to join the family calling since she was five years old. “The kids are the light of my life! My favorite part of teaching is the relationships, watching my students learn and grow and have those light-bulb moments.” As the COVID-19 pandemic transformed what her students’ school day looked like, Sadie needed to adapt, during both remote learning and the new realities of in-person classrooms.

“The social distancing is the hardest part. Educators went from leaving school one day to not seeing our students again for months,” said Sadie. The silver lining she’s found: a stronger community of support and connection with fellow teachers, as they banded together to lean on each other. “We all know this isn’t a solo job anymore.” One of the ways she’s kept her energy and mood elevated: joyful touches in her look that burst through, even when she’s teaching through a screen, such as soft rainbow colors, summer knits and playful details.

Sadie also found inspiration in her students themselves, as she watched their resilience and joy endure through a difficult school year. “My students were writing stories about feelings, and I have one kid who was very private about his—but at the last minute he decided he was ready to share. And his story was about distance learning and having the year be different. He got really emotional, the class got really emotional, and just by having this first-grader share his words and his perspective, we all were able to say, yeah, this is tough, and it’s ok to have feelings about it. It just broke down this barrier we didn’t even know was there. It took the class to a different level. And I’m like, wow, I get to do this every day? How cool is that!”