A Shout Out to You

I want to give a shout out to Kandice.

If you ever read the comments on this blog, you'll note lots of intelligent ones--some longer than others--but all are well-thought out and even add more information to what I've written.  Sometimes the information is from a differing point of view.  Those are my favorites, because rarely is life so black and white that we can point to one view as being absolutely correct.

Anyway, I haven't been linking this blog to facebook lately.  I have been struggling with a chronic illness and haven't had the energy.  It's been all I can do to post occasionally, and I hope those posts make sense, because it's quite likely that some of them don't!  But I still have readers every day, and I'm incredibly thankful for that.

Most of the comments made on this blog are from former students of mine, as well as a few parents of former (very young) students of mine.  It truly humbles me that these people actually read this mess, let alone comment on it.  I went to school for my bachelors, then to another for a master's, before switching to a third for a different master's, and I never had a teacher that I thought I'd keep in touch with.  So I feel super special that these people have chosen to keep me in their circle; in their lives with their partners and babies and vacations and jobs.  It's pretty awesome.

Anyway, when I logged on tonight, unsure of what I would write about, I pulled up my comments and noted immediately that my former student Kandice had commented.  She had actually commented twice on two different posts recently.  Kandice recently became a mom, then went back to work, so you know she has all the time in the world to sit around reading my blog and making comments.  But she does, and I wanted to say thanks.

One of the things that always was so meaningful to me as an instructor was the opportunity to see students through their program.  I watched as they came in, some timid and others convinced they knew everything there was to know.  I helped participate in challenging their views or asking questions for them to ponder.  Don't get me wrong--they did the work.  They were smart and capable and able to construct their own belief systems about teaching and learning.

At one point during her education, Kandice came to me asking about my thought of her pursuing a dual major.  She had developed an interest in a study she hadn't known she had before.  We talked quite a bit about what she wanted to do and whether she should pursue a dual major.  Honestly, (and this is terrible), I don't remember what she decided.  But I remember that she trusted me enough to come to me and talk about it.  Having those experiences with students meant the world to me.  I felt trusted and respected, and got a tiny glimpse into their worlds.

Don't get me wrong--sometimes I screwed up royally and had to eat crow and apologize for the way I handled a situation.  But I like to think that overall, I maintained the same standards I expected from my students--honesty, fairness, integrity, and confidentiality.

Kandice, Dax is one lucky kid.  I could list countless young women who have beautiful children, and those children are incredibly fortunate to have the mothers they have.  Mothers who understand children, who care about their children's development in all areas and will provide them with whatever is needed to ensure their success.  So yeah, I guess it's a shout out to all of you.  I'm proud to know you, and I'm humbled by all that you do--and teach others--every day.