I happened to be down at the office today when the phone rang. Our secretary picked it up, I got ready to leave, and she motioned me back to her desk. She said there was a young man on the phone, Zach K., who was an ex student of mine. He was wondering if he could stop by school and see me some time as he happened to be visiting from out of town.
My face lit up. Zach K. How well I remembered him. I said that 1:30 would be just fine and looked forward to the time when we could visit. I tried to recall how many years ago he had been in my room, tried to imagine what he might look like now, and memories of him as an 8 year old in my room kept me busy all morning.
About 1:30, a tall, distinguished, handsome young man appeared at my classroom door. There was Zach! I never would have recognized him. I introduced him to the class, took them to the Learning Center, and Zach and I sat down for a very long overdue conversation. Zach had moved out of town and I had lost track of him. He filled me in. Much to my surprise he is 18. I had him 10 years ago!
He moved from here to Kewanee, Champaign, and then South Carolina. His life was not always easy but he has done great things with it. He is currently a freshman in college and wants to be a teacher!!!! He thought about elementary but finds his interest in drama and public speaking, so will pursue that dream. We took out pictures of the students in his class in 1998 and we recalled some of the good times that year. He asked about many of the students and I was able to fill him in.
Much too quickly it was time for him to go. I hated to see it end. My little friend Zach, grown up, with wonderful goals, a pleasant personality, and a keen insight into life. I felt honored that he had come to visit. As a matter of fact, he is going to college HERE and offered to come into the classroom and help whenever I needed. Turn around is fair play. I look forward to his upcoming visits!
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