Student Teaching

I started my teaching internship last week. This is what I have been working toward for the past three years and now it is finally here. The only downside to my placement is that I miss the companionship of my classmates. In the past we have been place in the same grade level and have on many occasions worked together on big grade level projects for our cooperative teachers, sat on the playground supervising students together, and eaten lunch together often. There was always the occasional chance meeting at the copy machine or the laminator. Those are high traffic areas in elementary schools and you are bound to have to wait in line on most occasions. We also had classes togther on days we weren't in our field experience so we saw each other often.

This semester we do have a seminar class that meets on Monday nights. So we will at least see each other then. The problem with that is we are all tired from working all day and the class doesn't seem like the kind of class with built in opportunities to work together. I am thrilled to be finished with all my courses, am in the midst of the most wonderful place in the world everyday (kindergarten), and am only about three and a half months from putting on my cap and gown and recieving my long awaited college diploma. For those things I am overflowing with joy.

At the same time I find myself mourning the loss of the college experience. The times we spent sitting in the student center laughing at the antics of our class clown, our experiences with some very diverse and sometimes excentric professors, and encouraging and supporting each other through difficult days are some of the things I find myself missing. Life has taught me that eventually I will miss every season of my life. It may not always seem like it at the time but someday I will look back and remember with fondness the things that once caused me stress. Although it may not seem like it to most people who know me, I have mellowed with age. I have learned to stop and enjoy the time and place that God has placed me in. That is not to say that I am perfect by any means but I do find myself seeing the glass half full more than I see it half empty.

Life moves pretty fast. You don't stop and look around once in a while, you could miss it. ~FerrisBueller~