Last night, the blog passed the 30 million mark. That is the number of times that someone has opened a post.

I started the blog at the end of April 2012. Five years.

I have loved getting to know so many new people, if only virtually.

I have spent five years learning about What is happening many districts and states. I have read every one of the nearly 400,000 comments you have left. I draw upon what I have learned from you. You have been my teachers. I have tried to speak for children and educators. I have tried to keep in front of my mind a constant vision of what good education is and should be as I write.

Reaching the 30 million mark provides a reason for reflection. I enjoy the blogging but I plan to shift gears. I am spending too many hours a day on this; it is a full-time occupation. I don’t want it to feel onerous. I want to set limits for myself. I haven’t done that these past five years.

Here is my announcement. I have started writing my memoirs. I have so far written about 15,000 words. I am having so much fun doing it. Writing the blog has made me a better writer. Words flow more easily, as do feelings.

I don’t blog for myself. I blog because I am trying to give voice to the educators who have no public platform. I have opened the blog to teacher-writers to tell their stories. I have wanted to create a space for teacher-leaders to speak up. I wanted many people to feel emboldened to speak out.

I have wanted to build a movement against the assault on public schools and the teaching profession. That’s why I joined with Anthony Cody five years ago to start the Network for Public Education. Its membership has grown to more than 350,000 under the great leadership of Carol Burris.

I hope everyone who reads this is a member of the Network for Public Education. The fight for the future of public education has never been as perilous and crucial as it is now.

I need you. There is so much work to be done. I need allies, and I need successors.

We need to maintain the spirit of unity and outrage that came close to derailing Betsy DeVos’s appointment.

Wherever you are, be strong. Fight for the common good. Oppose the politics of greed and privatization. All of us together can protect our values, our children, our democracy.

Do not be discouraged by the current situation. Resistance works. Protest works. We shall overcome.

PS: I am not stopping the blog. Just announcing my determination to shift gears, slow down, be unpredictable. But it may take a long time to be noticeable, and it may not happen at all. Old habits die hard.