Wow talk about long time, no blogging. I felt like blogging today because I feel extremely blessed and grateful. Today is my birthday. While I do love the celebration and gifts that are given, I love even more how grateful my birthday makes me feel. So many people that I love wishing me happy birthday. It truly makes me realize how good I have it.
This morning when my students came in, or should I say came running in, they came right up to my desk and started "showering" (tossing) their gifts they had gotten at me. It was probably the cutest thing I have ever seen. One of my sweet students gave me an individual applesauce cup, that I'm sure was from her home lunch, a girl handed me a present and when I opened it, it was a drawing of a orca whale, one boy made me a pop up card. Let's not forget all the chocolate that I received today. While some of these gifts may seem silly, I will treasure them always. I am so grateful for my class. I didn't know it was possible to love 26 adorable, slightly annoying, hilarious, and thoughtful kids.
I feel like one of the best gifts I received today wasn't even tangible. A boy who had hall monitor duty came in after recess was over and the rest of the class was at specialties and just sat and talked with me. He has had a rough year with various things to deal with. One thing I've noticed and admired about him, is his positive attitude. I've never heard him complain about his situation once. As he sat talking to me about things he had gone through, I realized his is wise beyond his years. I'm so grateful for that short 20 mins I was able to talk with him one on one and really listen to what he had to say. Could I have been doing other things such as sub plans, or preparing for the next week? Sure. But I wouldn't have traded that for anything. I guess what I realized is, teachers are usually the ones who you remember for a lifetime. But now being a teacher, I realize there will be students you will remember for a lifetime.
I love all of my students very dearly. Even the nose pickers. I hope that I have left a positive mark in their minds, just like they have left in mine. What a wonderful birthday!
