Goodbyes

The last day of class was always a celebration while teaching in person. No one wanted to be there on the last day of class, and everyone was excited to get on with their lives. This was true for public school in the city, public school in the county, and private school in the county. We all knew we would probably see each other again. We were all kind of tired of each other by the end of the year.

Enter online school with Veritas Scholars Academy. Back in my first year here at VSA, I went through the year doing my best to teach the kids. There were ups, there were downs, and there was a whole lot of learning as a first year online teacher. The year was coming to an end, I was excited to say goodbye, just like years before.

Then it hit me: what would I say at the end of class? Would it just be a casual goodbye? But wait! I wouldn’t get to see these students again – maybe ever!

This added a weight to the goodbye that I didn’t expect. Here were the guiding questions I was trying to answer:

What do you tell a middle school aged student that you may never see again? What advice could you give someone that age that could change their life forever?

Well, I bawled that first year – almost every class. I did my best to give said advice. The students took it really well, many of them cried as well. Lord willing, some of them are still keeping my advice.

This helped me learn something: you can make connections over the internet. Real connections that matter and last. Even if you’ve never met the person or persons. How else could Paul write “For I long to see you so that I may impart some spiritual gift to you, that you may be strengthened”? It’s possible to long to meet someone you’ve never met. I didn’t know that was possible, and now I’m blessed to get to do this every single year.