"Welcome back, welcome back, welcome back..."

First of all, I hope you SANG the title of this post. I love John Travolta so I thought throwing a little Welcome Back Kotter in there seemed fitting given the events of the day :)

Today was the first day back at school for me and the kiddos! Well, I guess it was the first day back at work for me. My first day back at school is on Monday. Blaaahhh. Don't want to think about that yet so we'll talk about the first day back at school with the kiddos. It was a satisfying one :)

During our assembly in the 90 degree gym with more than 1,500 kids, the keynote speaker said something I can relate to. To give a little background first, the speaker was a part-time English teacher who works in the building. She teaches the first half of the day then goes home to spend time with her three children. I have had the privilege to be in one of her classes with a student and she is the most entertaining teacher I have ever met. She throws out dance moves, sings, tells stories about her children being little turds, messes up her hair (which somehow always gracefully falls back into place), raps, beatboxes, and does Jersey impressions (she's from New Jersey) all the while teaching. She makes learning fun and exciting. She connects with each and every one of her students and I can tell that connection makes them feel special. I can see it on their faces and in their body language. She has a huge impact on the students in the way she teaches and her relationships with them. I can honestly say she is an awesome teacher to have around the hallways of City High School and I wish I would have had her as my English teacher when I attended City High back in the day. Dag nab it!

To get back to my point, she said something in her speech this morning that I can relate to. She said when she leaves her three kids after having a wonderful summer with them she doesn't feel bad leaving them (maybe a little) because she is going back to her second family at City High. Walking into the doors this morning she said she was greeted by so many uplifting faces. Whether it was, "Hi, Ms. Fettweis!" "Hello! How was your summer?" or "Sup?" she said it was very welcoming. She was back with her second family and I feel the exact way when I walk through those doors as well. Whether it is one of my track athletes or volleyball players saying hi, one of my coworkers, or a teacher, it just feels uplifting. The relationships you develop working at a school is just awesome. That is all I can say and I couldn't be more confident in my decision to become a School Counselor.