The gift I am most grateful for -- the jar

Yesterday, two representatives from our student organization (CoDA) dropped by my office.  They said they had a Christmas gift for me.  Over the years I have received Christmas presents from many students, each of them unique and special to the relationship I have had with the giver.  This gift was quite different than any other I have ever received.  The girls handed me a medium sized glass jar that they had decorated.  It had ribbon around it, my initials glued onto it and paper decorations attached to it.  Inside the jar, were dozens of colorful slips of paper that contained a single sentence about how each of them appreciated me.  I was stunned.  I was humbled.  I was grateful.

I have worked late into the evening tonight and I took a break a few minutes ago to open a present that a special out-going graduate student had left me.  I am not very good at opening presents in front of other people and frankly, I like to just hold them awhile and look at them in their pretty wrapping.  When I opened my gift, I found a Willow Tree figurine entitled the bright star.  She had enclosed a Christmas card that spoke to how much she appreciated all of the time we had spent together while she was a student.(Sometimes the best learning happens in between college courses) She described me as her bright star.  When Christmas is over I will place her card inside my jar so that I can pull it out when things seem dark.  Again, I was amazed and I was humbled.

As I was locking up my office door to leave for home, I noticed something sticking out of the top of my in/out box that hangs outside my door.  It was a card from another departing graduate student.  She began by saying, "I don't know if you have ever known this or not but you have gotten me through some pretty tough moments in graduate school."  Another card for my jar. Wow.

As educators, we sometimes complain that the hours are long and hard (I was at work tonight until after 10:00 pm) and that we get paid very little.  In the new year I hope to try and remember that the gifts (or rather rewards) that we often receive are worth more than all of the money and vacation time in the world.

Thank you to those of you who take the time to share with a teacher what he/she means to you.  I have a sincere feeling that aside from the hand made gifts from my children, my favorite gift this year and perhaps ever, will be my new glass jar.  I may be exhausted and broke but I am so blessed!