As a veteran public-school educator of seventeen years, Robert describes the interaction of his Buddhist values and education reform in his first year as a teacher. Motivated by a desire to redirect his career toward his ken and by progressive ideas of Buddhist right livelihood, Robert left a promising-but-stalled career in business to try his hand at education. A state-sponsored program developed to recruit mid-career changers into teaching facilitated the move. Placed in a pivotal role in a reorganizing school, a situation in which any first-year teacher will probably falter, Robert's Buddhist mindset helped him withstand the challenge and even make a positive contribution.

SECOND EDITION (published January 2023) includes shortened format and new chapters.