boston your my home...

as relentless feelings of homesickness resurface and in the wake of the boston celtic's 17th nba championship, i am reminded of my roots. as much as i have fallen in love (and i have literally done that too ;) with the midwest, i will forever be indebted to new england. something about the rustic aroma, the way the breeze blows, and those family members & friends whom i hold dear to me makes massa"chu"setts (excuse you) like no other place on earth. now, of course, i have enjoyed venturing outside of the sheltered east coast and exploring new lands and cultures; however, as dorothy gale so graciously reminds us "there is no place like home." so for those who question whether i will ever come home, i hope that you know me better than that. peace be the journey...(home)

"May love and laughter light your days, and warm your heart and home. May good and faithful friends be yours, wherever you may roam. May peace and plenty bless your world with joy that long endures. May all life's passing seasons bring the best to you and yours!"
~ an old Irish blessing

school's out for the summah

to say the least, it has been a LONG year. with that being said, i have thoroughly enjoyed my stay here at Saint Martin de Porres high school. my students were difficult & disrespectful at times, entertaining & inspirational at other moments. some days were harder to arise from bed than others and some staff members i got along with better than others. as i sit at my desk on this humid friday afternoon in june on the last day of school, i sluggishly retrace my steps starting in early august/september. there were feelings of incompetence, uncertainty, serenity, and jubilation. there was frustration and tears and pain and sacrifice. i s t r e t c h e d myself to the max and i grew in humility & patience. i would never change this year (even if those changes would make the year less stressful), because the people that i have encountered have transformed me in ways that i never thought possible. thank you saint martin's and know that i am forever changed because of you. st. martin de porres pray for all of us.

06.07.08

many of you know i find numbers to be fascinating! today's date is no exception. in fact, i had a conversation with a gentlemen at the local bike shop about this and he informed me that not only will we experience another date like this next year (07.08.09), but for the next several years as well. for a very different reason, today's date is significant and VERY MEANINGFUL--namely its Saint Martin de Porres High School's first ever graduation. 50 seniors will be receiving their diplomas and all 50 have been accepted (and hopefully will be attending) college in the fall. even though it is a sweltering 90 degrees here in cleveland, ohio, there is still a lot of electricity in the air. well, i gotta get ready for the graduation, so i'm signing off. GO WITH GOD, GOD GOES WITH YOU. God bless the Saint Martin de Porres family.

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