Last Days

The last day of classes was on Friday. Oh my, that was a day!
It started off as usual, we picked up the kids at the usual time. I was able to land bus duty on the last week of school, which I may complain about but I secretly LOVE bus duty. Well, I guess it's not a secret anymore now that it's on the internet. This is just a fun time to talk to a bunch of students and greet them and play with them (we've all gotten proficient in poking someone and then blaming it on someone else).

We were supposed to have soccer games in the morning but that's kind of hard when it was raining so hard the animals started showing up two by two. This led to indoor desperation moments of singing songs in English and Spanish in first grade along with reading "la libro grande!" Side note: I read my kids this GIGANTIC Mercer Mayer book earlier in the week and they LOVED it and wanted to read it again.  I highly recommend "My Special Friend" by Mercer Mayer. It was cute and gave us opportunities to talk about how to be nice to our friends.And it's a plus if you can read it from a book that is 2'x3' in size. After finishing the book, we played musical chairs which was adorable. I don't know what it is about little kids turning into football players and pushing each other for a seat, but I found it hysterical. Oooooh the faces they make.
By around 10, the rain finally stopped and we were able to take the kids out to smack the snot (or in this case, candy) out of a pinata.  For my 23rd birthday, there will be a pinata. I'm just saying.

After the fun and games at the school, we moved on to the church for the end of the school year program.  The kids sang, danced, acted, entertained. By far, the Second Grade drama was the funniest and adorable thing I think I've ever seen. I will try and get video footage uploaded to my blog at some point. After all the performances finished, it was time to say goodbye. Having my students come to me cryyyyyying as they said goodbye was by far one of the hardest moments of my life. I was honestly convinced that I would be able to hold off the tears until I at least got home. Yeah. Right.  To see all of my first grade girls with tears streaming down their face was so heartbreaking.  My emotions were drained after a time span of maybe 10 minutes, and my heart was wrenched from my chest (forgive the dramatic explanation, it was a dramatic moment in life).

But as I look back at that moment, not once did I ask myself if I was doing the right thing by leaving.  Not once did I say, "God are you sure?"  He had given me so much peace beforehand knowing that I was supposed to return home that I had no doubts during a huge emotional moment.  My dad even asked me later in the evening as we were chatting on Facebook if I was sure I wasn't supposed to stay. I told him that as sure as I was that I was supposed to come down here, I knew I needed to go home. Anytime I'm afraid at what will happen to these children while I'm gone, God whispers to me, "You call these 'your kids,' but they are really mine. And I won't let anything happen to them that I haven't planned. I hold them in the same palm of my hand that I hold you."