Tear Tattoo...

I had a really close friend a few years back whom whenever there was a sad or sentimental moment we would point to our eyes and say tear. We did it so much that we joked about actually getting a tear tattooed under our eye so we would just point to it and not have to say anything. From that point on when one of those moments came up we would just say tear tattoo. I really miss that friend but life took us down different roads. I know our paths will cross again and when they do it will make my heart happy and yes there will be a tear tattoo.

The reason I mention tear tattoo is because today I had a tear tattoo moment. Occasionally at work the older kids need me take them on a field trip and I leave my kids in the capable hands of my assistant. My kids are too young for field trips, but next year they will be old enough. It was circle time and we were talking and sharing stories when one little boy quietly raised his hand. I was a little taken back because this little boy never raises his hand and is rarely quiet. I called on him and he asked the simplest question that almost made me cry. It was:
"Mr. Jesse, when we are older will you take us on field trips like you do for the other class?"
Doesn't seem like a big deal, but to me it was the world. I am only there for the summer so come August chances are I will never see those kids again. That came rushing to mind right after he asked the question. I told him yes, even though the chances of it happening are slim to none. That is the curse of being a teacher. You fall in love with all these little individuals after helping them grow and teaching them to become good people and then they leave you a year later. Will you ever see them again? Maybe, but sadly not. I just hope that I have touched their hearts only a fraction of how they touched mine. Tear tattoo...