Last Day at Missouri

Tomorrow is a big day. My students stuff is packed. Desks are stacked to the side of the room. And packing boxes are almost high enough to touch the sky. It's the last day of school. The thing is, this year it's different. It's not only the last day of school, its the last day on the Missouri campus. 80 years of history getting ready to be put to rest.

I feel sad and I've only been on this campus for two years. I've tried to picture what it must be like for my students. Not only did their parents go to school at Missouri, their grandparents and great grandparents went as well. ASFM is deeply embedded into this community. It's a part of who they are and a place that holds all of their childhood memories. One of my cute ones told me today that her parents met on the playground set 30 years ago. She felt sad because she wasn't going to be able to meet her husband in the same way. I had another one cry in my arms today, devestated that she has to let go of this building.

Tomorrow, I have to say goodbye to the classroom I started my teaching career in. It sounds cheesy, but I'm having a hard time with it. It's not just a place I went to work in. It's been my second home. I've grown up in that room, cried in that room, adjusted to culture shock in that room, laughed in that room, and learned what it meant to be a teacher under the roof of 5C. Sure, we have a brand new "state of the art" campus next year, but, it won't be the same.

So here is a cheers to 5C! Here's to the students that have made me laugh so hard I could barely keep standing. To the room where I've learned so much about myself. And to the past two years of my life. Hard yes. But, worth every second of it. I couldn't imagine my life without this experience.

Missouri, I will miss you.