The last week of the center being open is here. Every one is being really nice to each other. All the parents and the teachers are sad. The younger children are picking up on their parents’ emotions. The older children tell their favorite teacher how scared they are to go to a new school and how they don’t want to be alone and away from their siblings. The parents’ are asking the teachers if they need letters of recommendation and asking for their contact info. The children bring the teachers a small gift of appreciation. The Thank You cards that come with the gifts have a picture of the children and a nice note that makes the teacher cry.
The last day is here…There are a lot of teachers by the front office talking and greeting parents as they walk in the front door. There are teachers with children walking in the hall and there are teachers rocking babies and feeding them their bottles for the last time. It is sad to see that every one is going to be leaving soon. The management team is walking around talking to everyone and letting all the teachers know how much they appreciate their help and how without them the center wouldn’t have been what it was. Management is crying, the teachers are crying, the children are looking…..People are walking around with cameras taking pictures of everyone, trying to remember peoples’ smiling faces, the people they have worked with for 5 years.
One last get together…everyone was invited to a co-workers house for hotdog and beer. A lot of people showed up, some early some late. Everyone seemed to enjoy themselves. There were people sitting at tables all over the back yard. Some were sitting by a bonfire making ‘smores. Some people were calm and relaxed and some were loud and obnoxious. No matter what people looked like they were having fun. After a while everyone seemed to migrate to the basement. There they started to sing Karaoke and play drinking games like Drinko….not the scene for me so I took a few minutes to say goodbye, promising everyone I will keep in touch. It will be hard to keep in touch with some people, but easy to with the ones I worked directly with.
