Letter to my students

To open our last justice circle, I wrote a letter to the kids. I wanted to post it here as a reminder that the greatest gift I have received this year is the opportunity to teach this group of students. Happy Holidays.

Dear Friends,

I wanted to let you know how proud I am of you. Every day you never cease to amaze me with your questions, curiosities, hopes and dreams. Two of the greatest joys in my entire teaching career have been to watch you grow in your learning, and mature as kind, caring and honorable human beings.

Over the past several months we have gotten to know each other well. We have laughed together in the lunch room. We have screamed together down the sledding hill, and we have asked each other if we want to "buy a duck" more times than I can begin to count. More than all of this, I especially look forward to the special time we spend getting to know each other inside of our circle. This past week, we talked about our enchanted places-- places where you can shed the outer layers of yourself and can be the most authentic YOU. Many of you described your enchanted places being in your bedroom, nestled in your favorite blanket, or with a wrench, a car and the company of your father. I promised you that I would reveal one of my enchanted places. I will give you a hint...you are all sitting in it right now. Inside the bounds of this circle, this special place, true magic happens. I am not talking about the pulling the rabbit out of the hat kind of magic. I am talking about the kind of magic where 16 unique individuals, with different backgrounds, families and lifestyles can sit together and be their truest selves. Inside of our circle we have established a place where we only know the best that everyone has to offer. While we recognize that we are all human and capable of making mistakes and decisions that we aren't always proud of, we are somehow able to look past all of that. Inside our magic circle, we cry, laugh, reflect, listen and understand each other from the deepest parts of our hearts. Inside this circle we know that we don't have to put on an act or a front. No one is expecting us to be anything but our most genuine selves. It is not often that we come across this kind of magic--the kind of magic that takes our breath away--the kind of magic that results in a common understanding of what it is like to grow up and discover who you are.

I hope that one day you will look back on the time we spent together in our circle as an enchanted place of your own. When you grow up and flourish in everything that you do, you will remember these things:

**how important it is to listen with an open mind
**how important it is to speak with an open heart
**for years to come, long after you graduate high school and college--in the many circles i will have with other students, there will always be an opening and a place for you.

I am so proud to be your teacher.