Well, today was the last day of my regular classes for the semester. I get so tired by the end of the semester it feels like I am sliding into home base on a prayer.  Yet, I always feel a bit melancholy when the last regular class sessions arrive each semester.  I am fortunate in that my class sizes are manageable and I really get to know my students, not all faculty are as fortunate.  The students grow on me over the semester and I get used to talking to them and hearing their thoughts on things.  Then before you know it, the semester is over and they are off to places unknown.

And then I miss them.  It was from teaching at the university that I realized I could never do foster care…I could not take all the goodbyes. With my students it really isn’t goodbye as much as it is  “so long” as I end up seeing them here and there throughout their time at NDSU and then often I get to see and chat with them later when they get into the field. Yet once they leave the makeup of that class – and each class has its own magical dynamic – the melancholy sets in…more of my little birds are readying themselves to leave the nest.

Of course I know that leaving the nest is the whole point.  I know that my job is to help them build their wings and I know they want so badly to fly that they are anxious to leave.  And they all do leave eventually and there are always new ones that come and fill their seats when they are gone…and I know it is the cycle of growth and development that is eternal in the institution…yes, I know all this.  But still, I miss them when they are gone.

My job is to continue to feather the nest, to encourage them to try flying and to give them a little push if necessary to show them they have what it takes.  My job is to be happy that they have learned to fly and ultimately to let go.

So long little birds – you know where to find me if you need me and even if you don’t need me stop by my office when you fly through…I’ll still be here feathering the nest. 😉

Day six hundred and sixty-eight of the new forty – obla di obla da

Ms. C