At the end.....

The year ended as it always does- in a rush of backpacks over flowing with books and papers collected from a year of learning, in the crush of many eight year old arms wrapping themselves around me, the piles of pictures telling me that I am the Best! Teacher! Ever!, last minute gifts, quick thank yous, cleaning and packing up and emptying a classroom that was so full of laughter and learning, discussing next year's class, and.....inevitably, tears.

Sometimes it is I who is doing the crying. Ten years in though, I can honestly say I haven't cried on the last day in a few years. This year, I did. Several times in fact.

The first time I cried on the last day of school was when I received an email, forwarded to me from my principal, sent by a parent whose two children I was blessed to have in my classroom. I say blessed because, truly, they are amazing kids and wonderfully supportive parents. The kind of kid who, on the last day of PE class, fumbled the ball and pretended to drop it so that my little special ed child would not get out during a game of Mat Ball. Point to a third grader that will do that and I'd be astonished, because in ten years of teaching (nine in third grade), I can say I've come across maybe half a dozen kids like that. Anyways, the email was the nicest thing I have ever received far and away. Those words don't even do it justice.....
Here is a snippet from the email:
Lisa is truly at a level that differentiates her from her colleagues. It is a wonderful combination to be so professionally gifted as a teacher, coupled with a distinctive ability to motivate and inspire children to learn and develop…and Lisa possesses such talents. I am incredibly impressed with her professional approach to her job, characterized by preparation, attention to detail and a tireless energy for teaching. While this in and of itself would be significant, with Lisa it only tells half of the story. Her unique gift lies in her ability to create a wonderful environment in her classroom, filled with warmth and caring and encompassed in her deep personal commitment towards the children. Long after the memories of flash cards and homework assignments passes, our children will remember and benefit from the personal investment Lisa made in their lives. As parents, we will also see it in their confidence, maturity and continued passion for learning.

You see now why I cried.....
I cried again when I opened the gift from this particular student whose dad sent this email.... he gave me a nice picture of the two of us together, with a card that read, "Mrs. S, when I'm with you, you always make me feel good!"
I'm not kidding when I say I was bawling when I read that card and then proceeded to embarrass the poor boy horribly by hugging him in front of all of his friends.

And then I cried one last time when I hugged my biter/stabber/kicker/yeller good bye. I'm sure some of you are wondering why in the world I cried rather than celebrated him leaving my classroom. All I can say is that this little guy taught me so much- about myself, about my profession, about my school. About learning and life and patience and strength and humor and frustration and honesty.....about the kind of teacher I always hoped I was and the kind of teacher I discovered I really am. I poured a lot of myself into helping him, never realizing until the end that he helped me just as much as I hope helped him. He is a gift, and I was blessed to learn with him.
And that- those two students and the nineteen others I had this year--that is why
I am a teacher.