A Small Part of Big Family

Can you believe it? It really happened! We did it! We made it to the LAST week. Hey guys, did you catch that... THE VERY LAST WEEK OF THE SEMESTER! We're here! Looking back at when I started this blog, I hardly even believed that the week of December 12th even existed... but here we are! And a very happy Monday to all of you :) We're actually done... we actually did it. We are still alive here today to talk about our victories!
I couldn't be more proud of all of you. And let me just say how honored I am to have been a part of all of your journeys. Finally let me thank you for being a part of mine. I honestly could not have done it without you. 

If we could, please take a moment to look back at all that we've achieved this semester... (and queue the montage)
...This entire blog started because we had our first #futureteachermeltdown And let me say that those moments haven't entirely ceased! But it's alright, I guess it keeps things interesting.
...We panicked about taking the Praxis test. Yet on class on Tuesday we passed around high fives to everyone who took it this round. We all passed!
...Columbus may have attempted to circumnavigate the globe but I know for many of us, seeing our thought process with unit planning and actual classroom application, we began to see our ideas come full circle.
...We spent an entire semester on an amazing, yet incredibly rocky, journey. Here we are at this small destination point. We have many more destinations to reach! Remember to weigh them both equally: the importance of the journey and our goals.
...We faced some scary moments of ah-ha epiphanies. One of those moments I can best remember is Dakota's realization that she's not being called to be a teacher. She took one heck of a plunge in her decision to withdrawal her student teaching application. And she's so incredibly happy! As are we! The best part, she's still a part of our family. :)
...We learned that it's okay to fail and English majors can cry! (As Eric's piece of advice, we shouldn't, but sometimes we just need to get it out of our systems.)
...We came to the realization that we're the lucky ones, not the kids. We don't go to work every day, we get to go to work every day. It's an honor to be in the front of society's youth.
...In the words of Mrs. Green (for those of you who know who I'm speaking of): You'll never be bored unless you're in a coma! Teaching is one of the most exciting careers we could have. The moment it gets bored, we need to make changes. You need to get the kids out of a coma and into hello. 
...There even came a point this semester when I didn't have any advice to share with you all. I realized then that I'm not always going to have the answers. (Or even be able to pretend like I have an answer.) Thanks to Liz, I learned that sometimes all we have to do is ask for the help.
...And finally we came to find how much we genuinely love the students we get to spend our days with. They aren't just a group of kids in desks there to listen to you every day, instead, they become your kids.
That's when I realized how much of a family we truly are. I'm a part of a beautiful group of people who have done nothing but shed love on each other all semester long. We celebrated successes and consoled each other over failures. None of us ever did this alone.

As this semester comes to an end, let me just again thank you for everything each of you have done. I so indebted to you for all that I've learned. Thank you, thank you, thank you. And finally, let me part with an old Irish blessing some of you may know...

May the road rise to meet you, may the wind always be at your back, may the sun shine warm upon your face, may the rains fall softly upon your fields, and until we meet again, may God hold you in the palm of his hand.