This is one of those “included but not limited to” situations. I know I won’t get to say goodbye to everyone who is meaningful in my life, but undoubtedly, there are many with whom the opportunity will present itself. So. Part one.
Kia has been my friend since June of 1998. We partook in a journalism workshop together and found commonality in our gentle and compassionate nature. I didn’t have the words for it at the time, but I felt that the two of us would contribute to the saving of this world for the marginalized. Not completely, obviously, but we’d do our part. In two decades of strong friendship with intermittent contact, we would go on to do just that with education as our backdrop. One of my fondest memories I have with her is sharing a commitment to be meaner. Yeah that’s right! Only because, well, if you knew me back in my early 20s and before, I had a bit of a doormat syndrome that 14 years of classroom teaching and life experience have since cured. Now, I have a better sense of limiting how much I help folks, tempered with better qualities than knee-jerk reactive bail-out help. Empowerment for one, acceptance another. Kia is a close friend with whom I’ve greatly enjoyed the growing up process. Someone I’m proud to call a lifelong friend.
Barb T. A retired teacher from OLG with whom I never taught, full time anyway. She was subbing when I first met her, and I recall the day vividly. I was in the staff room during my planning period on a mildly rough day, eating a mini bag of Fritos. Or maybe Cheetos. As I indulged, I introduced myself, and she herself, accompanied with a quick accusation. “Is that a bag of chips from the Speech Team snacks for this afternoon’s meeting?” To which I said “😳.” It was then that I became acquainted with “the Eye” – her trademark one-eyebrow raise, which she employed on naughty children. I also became acquainted with her warm and loving smile, which she shared with me after a quick, nervous moment. “I won’t tell as long as you share,” she said. We’ve been friends ever since. Her encouragement has always pushed me to imagine my life as an educator beyond any bubble I placed around my career and her company has never been less than pleasant. She has a way of making me feel like everything is going to turn out just fine, just by her reassuring presence and doubtless faith in me.
This is the Professor. The famed “Boy who-got-his-teacher-to-write-a-novel.” I had to meet up with Kellen. He did much more than help me write my first novel by giving me writing homework. He helped me understand, in practice, that if I worked hard and dedicated myself to some far off and distant goal, I could actually achieve it. He obliterated the concept of a pipe dream for me, not only by pushing me to writing, but working incredibly hard at following his own dream of playing professional baseball. There are many people in our lives who encourage us to live beyond our self-imposed limitations, but I think there are only a few who we actually listen to. I listened to Kellen, I think, because he was a student in my class, doing for me what I was supposed to do for him – teach and mentor. When I asked him to give me writing homework, he didn’t stop there. He understood my dream of becoming an author, and relentlessly pushed me to make it happen. Truthfully, I would do just about anything to help my students succeed. He was a rare student who reflected that feeling back to me. It humbled me, and instilled not just a momentary gratitude, but a lasting spirit of gratitude in me for all those students I educate.
And while I’m catching up on former students, I can’t not mention Cyrus and his brother Gabe. I remember writing on Gabriel’s high school application, something along the lines of, “I’ve never been more convinced of a person’s capacity to change the world for the better.” One of my best lines, I think, and not presumptuous in the least. If you have taught Gabe, you would say the same thing. Barring some absolute heinous brainwashing, Gabe’s ability to critically analyze the way of the world, from policy to everyday social interaction, coupled with his inclination to compassion and equality, will make him a change agent for the good of humanity. Now, that’s saying a lot, but you know what, I think we all have that same quality within us. It’s just that Gabe was a little or a lot more willing to bear that quality than most. And Cyrus, the younger brother, pictured above. With the same ability to process the world around him, he expresses his thoughts via his skill in writing. As a writer myself, to see one of my students employ that skill to the extent of Cyrus (a novel completed in my class, an award-winning one act play in high school), inspires and impresses me to no end. I’m so happy to be a friend of their family, and to have had the chance to catch up before my time in Seattle comes to an end.
Lastly for now, my teen hoops crew. A few years back, I started running open gym at OLG for graduates in high school. It paired two entities for which I have great affection: my former students and basketball.
And yes, I may return to this beautiful home, but not often in life have I had the opportunity to enjoy an end. A monumental one at that. I can tell you, there is a mysterious satisfaction in an end. To close the book on something, only to find yourself in an unchartered beginning. What happens to a person when he finishes a book? Hopefully, he learns new information that can be applied to the next great experience.
These last several weeks have been an absolute blessing, to revisit some of the key characters in my story. And this is only part one. More odes to come. Love you all. – Jace
