As an early elementary teacher, I routinely receive love notes from my students. “I love you so much.” “You are so pretty.” And one that makes me laugh: “You are the best teacher ever!” (I laugh, because they’ve generally had two or maybe three other teachers in their young lives!) Hugs are a typical part of my day, often turning into “GROUP HUG!” with several children piling on. In first and second grade, kids will still hold my hand as we walk down the hallway--giving me the chance to give them a few special squeezes. On the papers they hand in, kids often write me little notes, surrounded by hearts, of their undying love for me. In early elementary, kids adore me, and I know they’ll miss me when they move on to the next grade.
But move on they do. They go to third, fourth, fifth...and then they leave my building. Occasionally, there are reasons for them to come back to my building and do something: help a teacher, participate in an assembly, work with students. During these visits, my heartstrings pull and I think (okay, I probably usually say,) “Oh, look at him. That’s my ___ (fill in the blank with a name, usually some sort of goofy nickname like Scooby or Laneybug or Spartacus) right there!” Sometimes these kids will come visit me, give me a hug, chat with me for a minute or two. They don’t know that it means the world to me. They don’t know that I still hold them in my heart just as tightly as I did when they were in my class, and that I want to reach out and hold them tightly, just one more time. I try to play it cool, but I’m sure I don’t. These are my kids, my babies, and it creates both pride and pain in me as they grow up.
Once they near the end of their education, most of my students have attached to a high school teacher and whatever tight knit relationship we had waaay back is tucked into their hearts, a sweet memory. A few continue to say hi, stop by my classroom, give a hug. A couple have even invited me to their graduation open houses. I try not to seem like a stalker, but I LOVE being invited to these. YOU remember ME? After all these years?? My husband has been invited to countless open houses and I’m always jealous, though very proud of him.
But this year, THIS YEAR, something incredible happened. Not only did I get invited to open houses, but THEY remembered me. Not just one or two. THE CLASS. The class remembered me by voting me the Inland Lakes Teacher of the Year. It is an honor that I’m not sure any other award could top. The fact that these students, who have experienced ten years of other teachers, thought back to their time with me and voted for me, for ME! It’s a beautiful thing, a long-stretching hand-squeeze back to me.
Unfortunately, I was too sick to attend the service and accept the award. But this becomes another lovely part of the story. The Hubby found out during the day of the ceremony that I was to receive the award. Knowing I wouldn’t be able to accept it, he contacted my teaching partner and arranged for five of my current students to go in my place. They got all dolled up, waited patiently through a service they probably didn’t understand, and accepted the award in my honor. It was a fantastic “circle of life” of my twenty years in education. My kids went to a ceremony and accepted an award for me from my kids. I hope they all know, all my kids, how very tightly I hold onto them in my heart, throughout their lives, and forever. Thank you, Inland Lakes Class of 2017, for loving me back.
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