Here I sit in a quiet classroom. Just the sounds of my coworkers prepping their rooms for the summer. The room once filled with children preparing for a test or discussing the character traits of the latest subject of study. These cinder block walls once covered in anchor charts, motivational words and student work stand bare. Another school year has come and gone.
As I sit in this quiet room, my thoughts remain with the heroic educators in Oklahoma. Hearing their stories and seeing the devastation that was once their cinder block walls and the remains of what was once a room filled with students preparing for a test and in deep discussion makes me mourn for their loss, but it makes me proud to call them colleagues in this world of education. These teachers are the truest of heroes because of their efforts and their ability to keep it all together as the world comes crashing down around them.
In the end, among all these crazy changes in education, let us remember we are all people who chose this profession because of children. We chose to teach, nurture, and protect children. This job is more than a number on a page or score on a test. Teachers in Connecticut are a testament to that. The teachers in Oklahoma are as well. Whether it be a bullet or an F5 tornado, teachers will stand, huddle, and even hide his or her students because those children are OUR children too.
So as I close up this room to await a new school year, I will place my hand on a cinder block and thank God for the brave teachers of Oklahoma.
Many blessings on a summer of recovery and strength
