The Part of Teaching No One Warned Me About

At the start of my lunch today I received a phone call. One of my students passed away. I didn't know how to respond. My first words were, "Wow! What happened?" All I was told is that there were medical complications. After hanging up, I didn't know what to do, so I emailed Phil, my mom, and Tracey. Phil was busy so he couldn't say much. My mom offered her thoughts and prayers, and Tracey shared with me a story about when she had to deal with a similiar situation.

I have gotten teary-eyed, but haven't cried...it feels weird to cry at school...

Students have begun to hear the news, and have come to talk to me. I have the "privilege" to talk to my 6th period class (the class in which this student was in) about the death. What a way to end the day...

This is difficult.