(I wrote this way before publishing. I think it was June 25.)
One last professional development class with my staff. God I love these people. 
Many of us have been together for five, ten, and even all of my 14 years. If I could describe us in five words, I would say passionate, loving, daring, easy going, and fun. I don’t have any bad blood. Disagreements? Sure. Arguments? Not really. Mostly, for the last 14 years, as staff come and go, I’ve always felt as though I’m waking up in the morning, yes to go to work, but also to hang out with some really cool people. People I call friends. People who have met me at every checkpoint my life’s journey. Here’s one valuable lesson I’ve learned about the people you work with – something I’ll take with me wherever I go. Build community with your coworkers, if at all possible. Be the catalyst for cordiality and friendship, because when you work with your friends, the quality of your product increases dramatically, as does your own morale. It’s not something that just happens though. What I’ve had at OLG is so special to me, but I hope it’s not unique.
Them Starry Crowns. I know I mentioned my band in “Home,” but we just had our last rehearsal, and I’ve got more to say. I know I’ll always need another tenor in my ear if I’m going to sound good, and Raphael helps me out time and time again. Ann has helped me feel comfortable with my style of singing (soulful, folky, R&B, slightly lost now and then) in the setting of a Catholic church. Then there’s Natalie, who makes me laugh by telling me not to eff up whenever I have a solo. Kris is always so generous, shares a good ear, and plays some kickin bass lines, which happen to be my favorite element of many of our songs. Scott is always sending out some amazing song suggestions with these trippy chords and sick tenor lines. Laura is just 90 degrees cool – she brings so much soul and groove to the music. And Susan. She’ll tear the roof off the place if you let her! That’s a bird’s eye view of my band. Together, we do so much more than make music. We joke, we drink, we laugh, we talk, we eat. With this group, I’ve experienced so much – my first paid gigs for music, my first time in the studio, my first performances with a full band (drums included). My love for music didn’t start with the Starries, but it sure took off.
I’ve only known Bridget for a year, but a confident and competent leader in your corner is gold to a teacher, including this veteran who’s always looking to learn. Guess what – I don’t know everything there is to know about teaching. But bouncing ideas off of Bridget and hearing her affirmations have lifted me as an educator. She helped me feel confident about my decision to move, not just in passing either. 
She kept the dialogue while I discerned. When I was so surprised that I got the job in Maui, she told me she was not surprised at all. It’s easy to pick yourself apart as a teacher, and that’s why supportive colleagues are integral to your longevity. For my going away present, she got me this wooden board with Jeremiah 29:11 painted on it: “For I know well the plans I have for you; plans for your welfare, not for woe.” This is the reading I use for the 8th grade baccalaureate mass, intended to reassure my graduates that God has great plans for their future as they transition from their home at OLG. When she gave this me, I totally lost it! She didn’t even know the significance of the reading to me, but that made the gift all the more natural and part of God’s plan. Plus, she got me a bottle of Jameson. That was God’s plan too, I’m sure. =)
Fr. Jack has been one of the greatest priests I’ve experienced in my life. He makes being a good person seem so simple, and provides concrete and challenging ways to live the Gospel. One specific lesson I remember from him was about judgement. He said to leave the judging to God, and if we do that, we free ourselves to just love our neighbor. This lesson profoundly resonates with me. There is so much gossip in the world. 
Everywhere I turn, I’m sure you might agree, there is somebody talking about somebody. I’m guilty of it too. But you know what, there are more moments when I choose to cast aside my judgement of a person instead of casting aside that person, and as a result, I have many people in my life whom I love. And that feels so much better than cutting people off. That’s thanks to Fr. Jack. I also recall an early homily of his regarding the feeding of the five thousand. This was always one of my favorite Gospels because it revolved around food, and I always thought it was simply miraculous that Jesus could just keep the fishies coming. But Fr. Jack shifted my view of Jesus’ miracle. He offered, maybe the miracle wasn’t that the fish and loaves magically multiplied, maybe it was that Jesus was the type of person who could inspire that many people to share what little they had. He stripped that story of its magic, and in doing so, made Jesus appropriately human. There’s so much more. This man hung a Christmas tree upside down in our church, sparking a literal WTH when I saw the sight. And it wasn’t a tiny tree either. This was a 20 foot tree. His message? Jesus came to turn the world upside down. Fr. Jack is everything a Catholic priest needs to be – dynamic, down to earth, full of vision, creative, progressive, and with a finger on the pulse of the community. When he speaks to you, it’s with a human voice, not a holy voice. For his farewell mass, he’s having the Starry Crowns sing Bobby McFerrin’s 23rd Psalm, which is written in the feminine. “The Lord is my shepherd, there is nothing I shall want. SHE leads me to green pastures…” One of the reasons I refuse to become a priest is because of its exclusivity of women. I understand the reasoning for limiting the job to men. I also understand that it is archaic and collides with my conscience. Fr. Jack has not just upheld my faith in God, but also in the Catholic Church.