To all the students I’ve loved…
Love takes on so many different forms. Friendship is love, family is love, having pets is love, passion for a cause is love, your career is love and so on and so on.
For a teacher with a big compassionate heart, their students are LOVE! With someone like me, this happens over and over again. It’s exhausting and beautiful. I will always love my students. They trust me with some of the most intimate parts of their life and I am always grateful to share their life experience with them. So, here are some of my many love letters…
To the brother and sister who started classes with me so young and with zero English and after 3 years they teach me about Pokemon, debate with me and tell me every detail of their day.
To the woman who told me she was pregnant before she even told her own mother because she was so excited and just couldn’t wait.
To the man who was on the verge of losing his job because of his language level and then ended up with a promotion instead!
To the moms that invited me to their kids birthday parties and made me feel loved.
To the families who introduced me to their cousins, nieces, nephews and grandparents with so much pride!
To the woman who was diagnosed with depression and discussed her past traumas, her present treatment and her future hopes and dreams.
To the new dad who called me outside of class time to tell me his son had just been born!!
To the woman who taught me how to do my own makeup via Zoom because I expressed my insecurities.
To the 88 year old man who needed companionship and always read the bible to me in class.
To the woman who was going through a divorce and cried and trusted me to tell me the hardest things she had ever experiencedThe woman who started class with me breastfeeding her 3 month old baby and now I have sweet conversations with the toddler at 3 years old.
To the teen girl in the orphanage who was waiting to be adopted. And even when she was so sad, she found excitement in teaching me all about K-Pop and BTS.
To the brothers who were about to move to another continent who found joy as we talked about Mario Kart and ice cream flavors together.
To the woman who drove 3 hours home from work but never missed a class and connected from her car when she needed to.
To the group that all chose their next tattoos during class and then helped me choose one for me too!
To the kids that visited my house to play with my cats and when I visited their house, they put 2 bunny rabbits in my hand immediately for me to hold and cuddle.
To the teen who prepared for interviews and essays with me and then made his dream come true of studying in Germany!
The kid who started with me at 11 years old and 3 years later is now a teenager. I have heard his voice deepen, watched his legs stretch to be so tall and discussed “girlfriends and relationships” as he grows up in front of my eyes.
To ALL of the students who have listened to me, checked in on me during hard times, held space for me, made me laugh and some who have even listened to me cry! Thank you to everyone who has come into my virtual or in person classroom at some point. I am grateful for you and I love you all!
