the end of mrs. carter

I sent a note home on Monday that informed the students and their parents that I would be retiring the end of term and that this would be my last week with the students and that Mrs. Cubbage would be working full time for the rest of the school year. The kids were smart enough to act decently sad and I received several nice notes from parents the following day.

I stayed busy with my class this week. They were a little hyped-up after the holidays and getting back into the school routine, but in addition, was I now the substitute teacher? Sometimes, I felt like they were trying me just to see what they could get away with, now that I was leaving and all. The antidote was work. I had to have a little laugh to myself one day when I passed out the homework and they were actually thrilled that it was homework rather than something else they had to do.

Throughout the week after school, instead of planning for the future, I looked through the files and boxes in my closet and packed up the personal things that I had been using in my classroom. I was fine until Thursday afternoon when I got to my stamp collection.  I started collecting rubber stamps when I began teaching just fresh out of college.

As I was packing them up, I suddenly felt an overwhelming sense of the years between then and now... a little dazed how the time goes by.  Finally, I just sat down and experienced a sort of mental panorama of my public teaching career. I am grateful for an education that allowed me to be an educator.

Brianna asked me this week if I always knew that I was going to be a teacher. I told her that I had wanted to be a teacher ever since I fell in love with my own second grade teacher, Mrs. Pestolaci.

I am not sure what I expected the last day of school to be like. I didn't really expect all the kids to be perfect, even for one day. It started out with an emotional twist when I unexpectedly ran into our principal, Dr. Moxley at the office when I was picking up the message/attendance folder and lunch money envelope. He said some extraordinary and thoughtful things to me. 

Then it was off to class. On Fridays the students get freeplay on the playground for their physical activity. It was the usual experience, like herding a snake (as my friend says), getting them there. We even walk on a line to try and keep them in one, but without success.

I love watching the kids play. But I think it is kind of awkward just standing there. Luckily for me, one of my students always wants to be my "chair carrier". This year it was Adam. Sooner or later, they all beg for the privilege, even knowing that they won't be getting stickers, stars, or a treat. But Adam was first to volunteer and he rarely gives it up to someone else.

Today, I asked them all to pose for a picture.

 

I should have known that it was all going to go downhill after that when two little girls came running and asked me to come a see a picture they had made in the sand for me.

 

I did TRY to smile and be gracious looking at their proud announcement  of my demise.

The rest of the day was a series of frustrations.  I literally had to hang on to the validation I felt when my class scored outstandingly on their midyear star reading test. I am sure that they have learned other things and improved other skills this year, it just wasn't that obvious today, exactly what that might have been...lol.

Soooo, I came home a little melancholy to be sure.

Sitting on the kitchen table were these:

and a card from my husband that sang:

I'm free

to do what I want

any old time...

ala Mick Jagger. It was also accompanied by the sweetest note of appreciation from him. Then he took me to dinner at Hemingways at the Grand Cypress Hyatt in Orlando and we sat right in the corner overlooking the pool and I had a great view of the fireworks show at Disneyland and dinner was beautiful and delicious.

We had a lovely evening together and

I'm free

to do what I want

any old time!