Here's an inspiring little "Final Stretch" story I have to share...
I have a precious 9 year old girl in my classroom who's name is "D" who has a prosthetic leg. The pictures that I'm sharing are of her back in January while she was pre-writing her personal narrative writing piece during writer's workshop. She was writing a persuasive essay about how having a prosthetic has changed her life for the better. (She was born without her right leg from above the knee down).
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| *Photo of "De" shared with permission from her Mama! |
As she was trying to explain all the different components of her prosthetic and how her prosthetic ankle works to her writing team (for instance, helps her be able to bend her prosthetic ankle which in turn helps her "foot" work inside of her normal shoe), on this particular day, she just felt that it would be much easier to have her leg handy while she talked about the components with her writing teammates.
And wa-la! Just like that, she removes her leg and stands it on the table! The kids were mesmerized to see her leg off in real life! We've always had a family approach to each students' individuality and uniqueness, and it warmed my heart when I realized that she felt comfortable enough to literally remove her leg so she could write in more detail.
So fast-forward to today... my kids had their annual fitness run. 2 times around the school property, which amounts to approximately a half mile.
In the 2 previous attempts at practicing the fitness run, this sweet little girl who I'll call "D" came back from PE heartbroken... because, according to the PE teacher's rubric, she had "failed the fitness run". The goal for all 3rd graders is to run it in under 7 minutes. So today, as my kids were running the fitness run, I stood on curve #1 and cheered them on, encouraging each of them to keep trying, to keep believing, to look at how far they've gone and not how far they have left to go, and to always remember, "I Believe in You!"
As "D" rounded this corner of lap #2, she was teary-eyed and about ready to quit. She said her "real"leg was numb above her prosthesis, and she didn't think she could finish. She was heartbroken because she didn't want to have to quit. She slowed down to a walk and I walked along beside her, reminding her that she was doing something that I, myself, could not do.
With tear-filled eyes, she tried her best to mutter the words... "but I'm just not sure I can take one step more Mrs. Shaw... I'll never make it in less than 7 minutes... "
I swallowed hard and said, "I'm so proud of you for making it this far! I'm gonna run the rest of the way right alongside of you! Together, WE CAN DO IT!!" grin emoticon
Now, please understand, I am the epitome of an, "I'm-49-I'll-be-50-in-25-days & I'm-overweight & outta-shape- oober-non-athletic" 3rd grade teacher" grin emoticon (tmi... I know, but I want you to get the complete mental picture here!) And I'm in capris, and my teacher sandals!!!
Truthfully, I had NO IDEA if I could make it 100 yards, not to mention whether I could possibly make it to the finish line without someone having to call 911, but I sure as heck didn't think twice! We ran side by side for the whole 2nd lap of the run. And that little stinker magically got a mighty gust of her 2nd wind like I've never seen before! And We. Ran. That. Sucker. TOGETHER!!!!! Nearly 75 3rd graders were cheering for the last 100 yards as we finally crossed that finish line-- together!!
And her time???? Was 6:27!! Her fastest time EVER and she beat her PR by almost 2 full minutes!!! Never in my life have I ever felt so blessed to be a teacher than I was today.
Thank you God, for little reminders amidst the utter-craziness of our profession, of all the reasons why we are so blessed as teachers, to serve in one of the most important careers in the universe!
Hang in there friends!!!!!
