My name is Susan Cabael, and I am a perpetual work in progress. I aspire to publish picture books that connect to readers and make people feel seen. Luckily I get to surround myself with gorgeous books in my elementary school classroom that help my students become more empathetic so they can contribute to a just and inclusive society.
As I planned out this newsletter, I found there are parts of my life that I really wanted to share:
BOOK REPORT. I love books. I like to read. There’s always more books than I have time. So I want to promote the talented creators who have made something I cherish. Anything I share will be worth the read, and I hope my thoughts will encourage you to give these books a view too. Most will likely be picture books and most will be by and/or about Asian Americans.
WRITERLY LIFE. I write picture books because the integration of words and art is magical to me. I want to create something that people can hold in their hand, connect to, and feel seen. As a teacher, I know my work has lasting impact, but it’s not something tangible. A book is. I crave that physical end product. That’s why I dream of and am working towards becoming a published picture book author. And what a journey it is!
WEEKLY PROGRESS REPORT. So much of writing picture books is not exactly writing. This will be brief, a short list of tasks I was able to check off—yes, I do celebrate them all, because each small step leads to big milestones.
PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT: THE REALITIES OF TEACHER LIFE. Teachers have a unique position in society. Almost everyone in the country has experienced school and understands (from a student perspective) what a teacher does. But only the staff in the classroom truly knows what the job entails. In my musings I hope to reach those teachers to let you know it’s not only you. There’s a whole community of educators who see you and get you. Sometimes we need to laugh about it. Sometimes we need to cry about it. And always we need the support of people who understand.
LIFE LESSONS. I call myself a perpetual work in progress because I like learning about how I can live my life and then implementing changes to make it better. I’d say in the last 8 or so years I started to look into different areas of my life, such as personal belongings and physical space, time management, physical and mental health, habits, work, raising children, managing a household, hobbies, dreams, etc. If I recognized something that was causing stress, I listened to podcasts or read books to help me find root causes, and then created plans to shift my mindset or adjust how I did things. Committing to small changes can and does make a big effect over time. I’m so happy to have taken the time to reflect and more importantly, to act. I rely on so many different people whose expertise I’ve used to teach and motivate me.
INTENTIONALLY UNINTENTIONAL. Sometimes I’ll simply want to share something. Could be thoughts on life. A really great bakery I visited. A description of a beach scene. A photo that brought me joy. Mostly a space for me to open up to you. An assortment of stuff sprinkled in my brain.
Mostly, I’m starting this newsletter to connect with you, because I do believe the more we stop to think about other people’s perspectives, the more we realize we are all human beings simply seeking to be seen and trying to live a life we love.
So let’s connect.
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