One week isn’t long enough to show our appreciation to teachers, nor is a month or even a year. It takes a lifetime to summon up an appropriate amount of gratitude for those dedicated souls. The swells of thankfulness move in a steady pace long after a student leaves that classroom for the last time. [...]
Dear teacher, Some students are like sour cherry trees, scraggly on the surface and difficult to prune. They need their space as much as they need attention and can’t always appreciate a sunny day. Still, you treat them gently, water as needed and try each day to help them grow. You may wonder, as they [...]
My favorite high school teacher died suddenly in her sleep last week, which is shocking and horrible. But, I have to believe she’s in an even better place, because she sure enjoyed the world she left and she’s a spunky spirit. So, if she did not like her new accommodations and did not appreciate being [...]
I stumbled onto a life-affirming example of Wisconsin education at its finest a few weeks ago just outside Eagle Point Senior Living Center. Midway across the trestle bridge, I thought I heard a sound I'd nearly forgotten and it sent my heart soaring. "Is that live music?" I asked people coming from the other direction. [...]
Because my sister Kathy (a middle child) retired mid-week, mid-semester, mid-pandemic, she might have slipped away unnoticed from the job she loved. But, her team of coworkers, friends and family weren't about to let that happen. On Wednesday, we all gathered for a surprise retirement parade past her house on a perfect May afternoon, made [...]