My Students

I have spent the past 10 months with the same 18 kids. My students. They were the constant this year for me. When I was missing my family and friends, or if it was dealing with the deaths of some of our teenagers, or missing the Ochoa kids, my students were always there. They kept me busy, they tried my patience, they kept me together when I was at my breaking point. I don't think they will ever fully understand how much they taught me this year and how important they are to me. When the year started my goal for our class was to be a team. Seems simple enough, work together. Well put together 18 kids from totally different backgrounds and upbringings and that is a tall order. We worked hard though. When we started the kids wouldn't each lunch together or play on the field together. When the year ended I had 18 kids that were inseparable and would defend each other through thick and thin. I had students who could all do a pretty good Mr. Corey impersonation also. My students will always have a special place in my heart and I wanted to give them something for them to understand how awesome they are. I'm a poor missionary so buying them all Playstations was out of the question. So instead I wrote them all a personal letter. I told them each about their strengths and how they have grown and learned over the past year. I told them each how proud I am of them and how they each have so much potential to make a difference in the broken country. Yesterday was report card day at school and each parent that came to talk to me could not stop talking about how much their child loved and cherished that letter. Needless to say I cried a few times. These 18 kids will always be "my students." I can't wait to watch them grow and have an impact on the world around them. I will be there to help them along if they need help from Mr. Corey.