From Classroom to Cultivation: Why I Left Teaching to Grow Cannabis

What happens when your creativity wants to grow in a different direction?

This is a story I’ve been wanting to share for a long time.

It’s written in my voice, but it’s not just my story. Nick—my husband, my partner, and the other half of Emerald Visions—is woven into every part of it. His experience, dedication, and belief in the plant made this life possible. I’m proud of what we’ve built together.

Before Emerald Visions, I was a high school art teacher. I loved working with students, creating community, and encouraging self-expression—but over time, I felt a quiet shift inside me. I wanted to grow in a different direction. To work with my hands. To build something from the ground up.

What follows is a piece of that journey—how I went from lesson plans to lighting cycles, and how cannabis became an unexpected continuation of the creative work I’d always loved.

Life in the Classroom

I taught high school art, and like many teachers, I wore more hats than my salary could ever account for. I was a mentor, a sounding board, a cheerleader, a life raft. The relationships I built with my students were meaningful and deeply fulfilling—and stepping away from that was not a decision I took lightly.

But as time went on, I started feeling a quiet shift inside me. I wanted more space to create freely. To work with my hands, to follow my curiosity, and to be outside of systems that so often stifled the very imagination we were trying to inspire.

I didn’t walk away from teaching because I stopped believing in it—I walked toward something that felt more aligned with where I was heading.

Why Cannabis? Why Now?

Cannabis had always been part of my life in quiet ways—helping with anxiety, sparking creativity, reminding me to slow down. But it wasn’t until I started seriously exploring the plant that I saw its full potential: as medicine, as art, as an act of connection and intention.

Leaving teaching wasn’t a retreat. It was a pivot. I didn’t know everything about cultivation, but I knew how to learn, how to plan, and how to show up with purpose—and that turned out to be a solid foundation.

With my partner, Nick, and a whole lot of curiosity, we built Emerald Visions from the ground up: a cannabis brand rooted in quality, creativity, and care.

From Lesson Plans to Lighting Cycles

When I met my husband Nick, cannabis quietly—but completely—became our entire life.  It was already his.

At first, it was just something we shared: a way to unwind, to reflect, to connect. But before long, it shaped everything. When we were looking for our first house, we weren’t just asking about square footage or school districts—we were eyeing basements and scanning for good airflow. Was there enough space to build a small grow? Could we run a clean power line? Would the neighbors mind?

Even our dream of having a little land came with a twist: we weren’t just dreaming of gardens, we were planning a secret garden. Somewhere the plants could soak in the sun without soaking up attention.

Vacations and weddings? Only if someone trustworthy could stay behind and tend the plants. We built our lives around their cycles, and in a way, they taught us how to live with more rhythm, more patience, and a whole lot more problem-solving.  When Nicks parents sold their house in Bakersfield they built an in-law apartment above our garage and became live in dog and plant sitters.

Creating Emerald Visions

Eventually, what started as a basement hobby rooted in passion and curiosity evolved into something bigger. We realized we didn’t just want to grow for ourselves—we wanted to share the kind of cannabis we loved with others: clean, terp-rich flower with personality, potency, and purpose.

We didn’t want to build just another brand. We wanted to build a vision: something psychedelic and precise, rooted and revolutionary. That’s how Emerald Visions was born.

We’re small by design. We don’t cut corners. We hand-trim our flower. We taste every phenotype. We’re not here to flood the market—we’re here to elevate it.

What I Gained When I Left the Classroom

What I found on the other side wasn’t just a new job—it was a different kind of purpose.

I rediscovered creativity, patience, and confidence in my intuition. I learned to listen—really listen—to my body, my environment, my plants. And I started building a life that felt aligned with who I am, not just what I was trained to do.

In some ways, I’m still teaching. Just not with whiteboards and lesson plans. I’m teaching through storytelling, through plant medicine, through the community we’re building one harvest at a time.

Letting Growth Lead

I know I’m not the only one who’s felt a shift—the sense that maybe your path is evolving into something new. That kind of change isn’t easy, but it’s powerful.

If you’re feeling called to grow in a new direction, trust that whisper. You’re not lost—you’re just becoming.

Want to Follow Along?

If this story resonates, I’d love to keep in touch. We share behind-the-scenes looks at life, cultivation, and creativity through our Substack, and on Instagram (until they inevitably shut us down again).

And if you’re ever in Vermont—come find us. We’ll be somewhere between the garden and the grow room.