~Thyme to go Home, On the Road to Somewhere, Part 3 and the end~


~Thyme to go Home, On the Road to Somewhere, Part 3 and the end~

I grew up in a farming family of 7 kids in all.  I'm sure that there were lean times for my folks, moments when they wondered how they would pay their bills and put food into the bellies of 7 hungry boys and girls.  They worked so hard and sacrificed so much in order that their children  might survive and thrive into adulthood.  I'm very sorry that neither of them lived long enough to open up the paper and see the picture shown below.

In the springtime of 2010, my sister Sherry and I decided to make a pact that we would hold hands tightly and retire together at the end of the school year in May.  Since Sherry's health was starting to decline and I had visions and dreams of becoming a hospice nurse, retiring seemed the most logical thing to do.  I remember the day we took the picture for this newspaper clipping.  Wes and Sherry had paid a visit to Avenue A Elementary School in Hutchinson, Kansas to visit my ESL classroom and meet those I thought would be my final group of students.  Sherry was my mentor and in the years that followed 2010 up until her death in 2017, she continued to guide me along the way as she offered sage advice on any question I had that pertained to helping students achieve academic success.

In many ways, Sherry and I were so much alike, truly in some ways we were almost the same person.  When someone would tell me that I was a good teacher, I would respond back always that I had the best education role model in the whole world. Everything I learned about being a successful and effective teacher, at least the part that counts the most, was shown to me by Sherry.  It was from her that I learned how important it is to teach kids the lessons of life, lessons that count for way more than a final score on a standardized state assessment each spring.  Both of us held the philosophy that sure, it was wonderful for a student to score exemplary in reading or math.  Without a doubt it is the goal of any teacher worth their weight in salt to bring students to that level.  Yet each of us knew in our hearts the following~
"What good is it to be the best reader or the greatest of mathematicians, if your heart is not kind and good?"
When Sherry passed away in June of 2017, I was not sure that I could go on in the classroom without her.  I was worried about that and a couple of days before she died, I shared my fear with her.  Both of us had tears in our eyes and from her hospital bed she told me that I could do it and that I would be just fine. Nearly 3 years later, I am happy to report that she was right.  It wasn't the same but life changed and I had to learn to change with it.  It was a very tough lesson at times to learn.

For 40 years I have been in the classroom, working very hard as a teacher and had some wonderful experiences along the way.  I've tried my best to reach as many students as I could, knowing that sadly I couldn't save every single one.  Yet it was not for lack of trying, that's for sure.  To all of my students in Kansas, Colorado, Texas and now Oklahoma, I hope that I made a difference somehow in your lives.  I hope that I taught you what you needed to know.  Above all else, I hope you knew in your heart one special thing~

I hope you know that I loved each of you with all of my heart!
This school year has been a year of refinement for me.  God has laid me upon His mighty anvil and molded me into the kind of person that I am supposed to be.  It was very painful at times but necessary for me.  I've never taught fifth grade in my life but I learned how to do it.  I've made mistakes, plenty of them as a matter of fact, but mistakes are how you grow and change.  That's what I came here for~to grow and to change.  I have sensed for some time now that the door to being a teacher was slowly closing. Originally I had thought I would stay for 2-3 years as an educator here in Ponca City, but things changed and I am calling this year my last one.  When I walk out of the classroom on the final day of school, I will pull the door closed behind me and that will be it.  It's a very unsettling feeling because after you give this much of your own life to a cause that is as righteous as providing children with the best education, love, and guidance as possible, it's hard to just walk away.

But I shall.

I've been a part of many different schools as I taught children.  So if you are reading this and I have taught alongside you during the past 40 years, I want you to know something very important to me.  Your acts of human kindness to me did not go unnoticed.  To those who welcomed me into their schools with open arms and greeted me each day with a smile and a sincere "How's it going?",  I owe you my heartfelt thanks.  To those who made me feel valued, who sometimes sought out my advice or my thoughts on how things should be, it was you who gave me confidence to know I was doing a good enough job to feel worthy of your time.  Most importantly above all else, to those of you who trusted me with your children and supported me all the way, I am and always will be eternally grateful for that trust.

I was born to be a teacher.
I thank God every day that I answered His call.
Thank you all for 40 years worth of blessings, memories, and of course~

Children.

 Sherry's retirement celebration after more than 40 years in education~
Altus Public Schools
Altus, Oklahoma
My sister Cindy and I proudly stood by her for this photo in May of 2010.
 November of 2016 and only 8 months before she passed away~
Sherry and Wes surprised me one day when I was teaching at Big Pasture Elementary School.
The door to my 3rd grade classroom opened up and there they were!  She was pretty weak but insisted on using her walker and marching right into school.  I will treasure this picture forever!  
 We were just two Kansas farm kids~

We were sisters, teachers, and actually very best friends.
Some day when I am 100 years old, I will come here and be her neighbor.  




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