A Love Note to My Students

I was shopping at Target with my girlies the other day and we walked past the infant clothing section.  We were sucked in to admire the fashionably designed dresses, and shirts, and sweaters. They were so little and teeny and tiny and absolutely adorable.  We wished we knew someone who had a baby so we could buy one of the outfits.  We spent far too long oohing and ahhing over something we would never purchase.

As we reluctantly pulled ourselves away from the best examples of microfashion that we'd encountered in a long time, we had a short discussion about the clothes they wore when they were little.  They claimed that their baby clothes were "ugly" and I explained that by early 2000's standards, they were very well-dressed babies.  The conversation halted when we got to the toy section where someone was using a gift card to purchase some new treasure.  

They debated the merits of various purchases and I allowed my mind wandered to the days when they were small.  I remember that each time they grew out of a size of clothing, I would, with tears in my eyes, admire each onesie and outfit that no longer fit and reverently place them into a plastic bin.  The emotion that comes with each transition between ages and stages has always taken me a bit by surprise.  I actually love who my girls are becoming and you could not pay me enough money in the world to go back to a time when my life was scheduled around nap time, but the joy I feel in watching them grow is punctuated by this big well of emotion.  

Yesterday, I felt the same well of emotion when thinking about kids who are not even my own kid. I was working on summaries about all of my 2nd grade students who will be 3rd graders in just a few weeks.  You see, they will no longer be my students; they are transitioning to the Upper Elementary and I'm writing summaries to give background to their new counselor.  I have no doubt that they are ready for the challenges of 3rd grade; our teachers at my school are amazing!  I know they are in good hands with their new counselor; she's seasoned, professional, and compassionate, and just a good all around person.  They will be fine and I will have a new crop of students to welcome into education when our new Kindergarteners take their first hesitant steps down our halls.  As the Bible and The Byrds say...  Everything has a season and my season with these students has come to an end.  

In my entire career, I have sent students off to something at the end of the school year.  This year it's 3rd grade; in the past it was adulthood.  I am excited about the fun new chapter these students will write in their lives.  I don't want them to stay little.  I don't want them to not grow up.  I hope they can realize all that potential they have in their minds and hearts and bodies.  I'm also eager to meet the new group of students coming our way so very soon.  

It's not a reluctance for change that drives this emotion at all.  As I contemplate this, I realize that what moves me is the awesome privilege and honor I have in being their social worker at school.  I am so dang lucky.  Every day, I am lucky.  I get to get dressed, go to school, and just be with those amazing little humans.  Over the years, they have entrusted so much to me.  They trust me with their secrets and their fears and their tiny broken hearts.  When I served adolescents they felt safe to tell me the big stuff that was scary and tricky to navigate - things like pregnancy, dating violence, chemical use, insecurity, and grief.  They poured their hopes and dreams and fears and worries into my hands trusting that I would handle it with the care it deserved.  

I hope I did handle those precious gifts with the care they deserved.  I hope my students know that despite any mistakes they made, I was in their corner...always.  I hope they know that when I saw them take their first steps toward the next thing whether it was 3rd grade or adulthood or something else, I felt so proud of them.  I am proud of their bravery, their persistence, and their wisdom.   I am emotional at these transitions because this world is filled with people and things that will make my students feel "less than."  They are bombarded with messages that tell them they don't matter and won't amount to anything and have little value.  I hope I did enough to convince them that those messages are lies.  I hope they know that they absolutely matter and I hope they have lots more "someones" in their world that remind them of their value.  Just in case, here's my final message to my precious, amazing, courageous students...

Dear Past, Present, and Future Students, 
I believe in you.  I adore you.  You matter.  Go be awesome.
Love, Ms. Rossow