I have decided as of yesterday that May is really the end of everything. At least for me as a teacher. I have spend most of my life ending things in April, May, or June. Which is to say it is also the beginning of a lot of things too. But let's focus on the ending for now.
For 13 years it was the end of public Education. April 29 is the anniversary of the end of before mission life. June 8 is the anniversary is the end of the mission. The end of every April signals the ending of University semesters. June 24 was the end of singlehood (Thank goodness), and for the next 30-ish years (assuming everything goes well!) I will be experiencing the end of school.
I do not like this some days.
I just finished teaching a great class that I will miss quite a bit. The worst part is that everytime I walk into my classroom during the summer, I picture where the desks SHOULD be and who SHOULD be sitting in them. I suppose if I didn't like my students this wouldn't be a problem.
What do you do?
I suppose the reason this is a little rough for yours truly is that all the people I see due to the education system seem to disappear for a few months.
This does make seeing students and friends at the end of the summer so much more exciting though. Know the bad to appreciate the sweet.
Now I am going to get philosophical.
Grandpa Corry also passed a way in May about 10 years ago. This was a bit rough for me. I had
spent the last few months before my mission staying the night doing what I could to help him out. He was bedridden for the most part. Unless he was determined to get up, which he did once, I have no idea how...Anyway. It was about this time in 1998 that he passed away. I was in the MTC. I was already homesick when I found out. I wasn't surprised, but as with all great men and great examples there was sorrow at his leaving us.
I guess the part of this post that is most important is that even though things end, they also begin again. So. School is over, but it will begin again. People pass away, but they will be seen again also. My grandfather Elwood Jones Corry was a great man. I hope I am proud of myself when I see him again, I hope even more that he is proud of me. When the end of my life comes I hope I will be ready to begin what ever is next.
So. What's the point of all this rambling? I do not know. I have been thinking about endings as a time for reflection, a sort of self-appraisal. Do I think this school year went well? Yeah, I do. Perfect? Nope, but better than the year previous. Did I end the year with more love for those I teach than I began with? Definitely.
That's a good beginning.
4 comments:
I'm not a teacher, but I have often felt the same way around May. The end of the school year was always hard for me, particularly in high school and college. Now it's the end of the opera season (in August) that gets a little tough, because the summer company leaves and I never know who will come back in future years. Some of them I know I won't miss, but some of them I absolutely do.
Anyway, I really liked reading this post. Grandpa Corry was such a treasure, wasn't he? I still miss him, think of him, and (like you) try to be the kind of person that will make him pleased.
Thanks.
p.s. Uncle Bill Coffman passed away while I was in the MTC. He had fairly advanced cancer when I left, and I remember thinking as I hugged him goodbye that this was probably the last time I'd see him. Still, when I got the news, it was a rough day.
Thanks for your comment Charlotte. I bet most of us want to please Elwood. I was pretty young when Bill died, so until you told me how he died just today, I wasn't quite sure.
I used a story about Grandma Florence (written by Elwood) in a talk today and afterward one of the brothers in the ward came up to me and told me how he remembered both Elwood and Florence. He said that when he and his wife bought his first house he was so worried and hiw father told him not to worry because Elwood would take care of it. Then followed that up by saying; "Elwood Corry is the most honest man in Cedar City".
Jeff, this post really hit hard, because of my retirement this year. Every day things happen that I say to myself, "This will be the last time I do this or that." These little guys (& gals) that are in your charge for 9 months are hard to walk away from. Every May, it's like your kids are being ripped away from you, but there are always new ones next year. This time there is no next year for me. Savor the sweet moments! I'll keep a water bottle handy! (inside joke)
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