First Day of School, Sort Of.

It is early in the morning, August 15, 2005. It isn't even 6:00 a.m. yet. I have been up for about 2 hours already, thinking, contemplating, planning, arranging, etc. I do this. I tend to be a nervous person beforehand. Usually, once things get going, I am fine, but ahead of time, Yikes!

Today is the first day of my life as a Teacher.

Well, not really, I won't see any kids until NEXT Monday, but this week, we are all in the building doing meetings, inservices, insurance signups, technology trainings, room decorations, etc. Nothing really to be worried about. Unless you are me.

Yesterday, I spent part of the afternoon at a viewing. One of my good friends and compadres from Project Promise 16 (my licensure program last year) went up to his teenage son's room last Thursday to find him dead of a gunshot wound. Can there be a more horrific scene in one's life? Not that I can think of.... It is uncertain as to whether he committed suicide because of depression or if he accidentally killed himself thrillseeking and playing Russian Roullette. Either way...

It occurs to me that as a Teacher, I will be encountering much more death than a normal person. Already, one of the students that I had last Spring as a Student Teacher at Berthoud High School has died in a drunk driving accident and now Jay's son is gone.

Kids are a lot more fragile than they think....