The Art of Designing

55 Degrees and Sunny today! Even though winter in Michigan means hockey season and beautiful snowy days, it also means you hibernate in your house for a few months until the cold weather leaves. But today feels like a wonderful, early spring day! Spring is like a new start.

I've been doing a great deal of thinking about my place in the field of design. I have had some wonderful scholarly opportunities as well as in my design career. However, I feel frustrated in finding my "niche" in this field.
I have always had an incredible passion for design. At the age of 3, I would sit at my little wooden kids table and draw for hours. As I grew, this continued and my interest became more and more prevalent. My mom was always a huge support of my interest. She continued to push me to pursue the this talent and ambition. At the age of 11, I wrote a "When I Grow Up" speech which was about becoming an Architect. I spoke in front of my elementary school, then the school board, then the local government people and finally in front of some state representatives. It was something, I feel, really sparked me to pursue it further. I furthered my education during high school technology/CAD/Design classes and then decided to pursue it as my career.
As I look at where I'm at now; significant amount of education behind me and also great work experience, I still feel as though the passion that has brought me this far is being suppressed. I also feel that there is a sense of fulfillment that is not being 'filled'. So this is where I stand....confused about one of the only things that has consistently followed me through my life.
I find that when I step into the classroom, I feel an incredible amount of passion and feel "at home". I frequently visit my old high school to see what the "up and comers" are working on. It is something I truly feel passion for....giving back the knowledge and passion that was given to me.
With that said, when I see a completed project that I've worked on, I also feel a sense of pride and excitement.
Therefore, I've been trying to signify the source of my passions....trying to decide if I should follow my drive to teach or remain working in the field solely...or....both!

I would love some feedback on this subject. Both from a design end and a teaching end. I think any advice is a good thing!

Inspiration....