teach.run.pray.

Mrs. Granger, I'm so thankful I had you as a teacher but I felt like you were a friend. You influenced my life a lot. Bless you. On July 20, I received the above message on IG from a student I taught last year. He has kept in touch with me all summer via social media. I pray he never forgets how much love I have for all of my students. I pray he'll hear my voice in his middle school head when he's faced with challenging choices.  Thank you so much for helping my little girl not only see her potential but you helped her reach her potential. A few days ago, I received the above message in an email from a previous student's parent. What that parent doesn't know is her little girl helped me see and reach my potential as a teacher, and her little girl helped me be a better human. I remember talking with her daughter on the playground the last day of school. This sweet girl asked me if I was ever going to be a mom. I responded, "Maybe, one day. If God wa

After my dad died, contact with his family slowly diminished. For many years, the only contact I had with my dad's family were funerals and letters. Mom, my dad's mother-my grandmother, and I were pen pals for nearly fifteen years. Then, one day, our letters to each other ceased to come and go. But, over those fifteen years, we shared secrets and truths and bonded. Words on paper carried our love back and forth. One day in my twenties, my grandmother called me. She called to inform me about my sister, Katie. I had not heard my grandmother's voice in quite some time, but I knew from the first sound she uttered this wasn't a fun, "how has life been" kind of phone call. Mom had called to inform me of Katie's passing.  Katie and I had not seen each other since my nephew's passing. Yes, Katie had a son around the time my mom birthed my sister, Paige. Katie and I were, well are, the daughters of David. David was my mother's second husband. Mom is