101 Babies

Being a teacher rocks...who would have thought that by the time I turned 32, I would have 101+ kids? Luckily, I don't have to pay for college tuition for all of them.

Yesterday was graduation for the seniors. I went because 1. These kids were my first students in North Carolina and 2. My principal required all teachers to go. Obviously, I was going to graduation anyway...these were *my kids*. As the students were in line, another teacher told me that a particular student was asking for me, so I made my way from the front to her spot in the back. It took me forever to get to her (she was near the end because of her last name) and as I strolled down the line, all I could hear was my name being called in different directions. Everytime I turned around, there was another student waiting for their turn to have a hug. I got so many, "I love you"s along with the token phrase that all of "my kids" adopted, "You rock my socks!". There were smiles and lots of tears. When I finally found Jessie, she was all smiles...and on her cell phone. I grabbed it from her and said, "Jessie needs to graduate now...call back later" and hung up. She just looked at me, laughed and while throwing her arms around me said, "I'm *really* going to miss you. I love you soooo much!! " and I know that she meant it with all of her heart. When she passed me during the ceremony, she stopped, blew me a kiss and again said, "I love you!". I know her situation...the life that she deals with. I've been her substitute mom for 2 years...boyfriends, breakups, sickness, prom, job dilemas, surgery, sports, skipping, the fear of failing, and the success. I was there for it all. I'm so proud of her...of all of *my kids*.

These kids know that they *belonged* to me-that I treated them exactly as I treat my own daughter. When I lectured them on behavior issues or the way they were slacking on their homework, I would say, "I'm tired of changing 101+ diapers and wiping all of your butts...get toilet trained and learn to do it yourself. " I remember when a group of seniors decided to call me "mom" and I responded with an exasperated, "What?!?". The kids laughed and said, "She really does love us...we really are her kids!", which lead to a conversation about graduation, new responsibilities, hopes and fears. They know that I expect greatness from them and that I'll stand by them even when things aren't going their way. If I could adopt them all, I would.

I know that by the fall, I'll have empty nest syndrom and thinking about each of them often. Thoughts of my seniors will become further and further apart, as the next year turns into the next. Two things are for certain, though...I'll *never* forget this class of seniors and they'll always be *my kids*.