Diving into life...

A letter posted on my GHS facebook account, to my students of all types...

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To my cherubs new and old, to my drama clubbers, to my ballroom dancers, to my English students, to my ABC boys, to all of you,

I thought it about time that I send out a message into the electronic ethos, in case any of you were looking for something to read (to avoid your summer reading, of course :). I also am thinking that this facebook account is going to disappear at some point this summer, so I wanted to bid it (and you all) farewell. But more than either of those reasons, I wanted to thank each and every one of you for the part you've played in this stage of my life.

Without you all, I would not have had the courage to listen to my heart and depart on an adventure to find the life that honors its song. Translation--it is because of my time at GHS and the people I met there that I am trusting and believing in myself.

I am inspired, daily, by teenagers and young adults. You are not what the majority of adults think you are. You are positive, creative, energetic, aware. Many of the words I've read and listened to, from the mouths of young people, have made me stop in my tracks and rethink what I thought I knew. I have learned that working with this age group is something that I will build my career around. But I have also learned that my career will look quite different than the traditional public school setting.

Time will tell how it will all come together in the end. In the meantime, I'm going to enjoy every step of the journey. And this is what I hope for all of you, as well. Enjoy each day, each moment, as it comes, trusting that it will all end the way it's supposed to. This is much harder than it seems, but it's so important.

There is so much I could say, but let me just finish with a few thank you's: Thanks for the side splitting laughter, the Saturday rehearsals, the dance competitions, the philosophical discussions, the "is it morning?'s," the raucous ABC dinners, the smiles in the hallways. Thank you for your insights, your questions, your challenges, your suggestions. Thank you for your intelligence, your talent, your passion, and your trust. Thanks for two fabulous musicals. Thanks for beginning the first ballroom dance club at GHS. Thanks for traveling to Ireland with me four years ago. Thanks for thinking, talking, and listening. Thanks for the energy boosts and the positivity when I needed them most. Thanks for all of this and so much more.

I said it before and I'll say it again--if it weren't for this stage in my life, I wouldn't be prepared for the next. For that, I will be eternally grateful.

I wish you all the best. I wish you love, happiness, and success (however you define that). I wish you the support and the courage to find what it is you LOVE to do, and then to pursue it wholeheartedly.

Peace, love, and laughter,

Ms. G/Mama G