Mourning a Former Student

I have tried blogging through the years and have always found it spotty just because I am always too busy to be consistent.  As a fact, my last posting was in 2010.  But now that I have finished my degree and with the support (and arm-twisting) of colleagues, I’m going to give it another shot.  I didn’t intend for this to be my first blog post, but the more I think about it, the more I think it should be for the question that I ask – Do we really stop to reflect on the influence that our students have on us?

I subscribe to Bill Ferriter’s blog, The Tempered Radical, and this week his blog was titled “TWIT (This Is Why I Teach): We REALLY DO Influence our Students.”  That got me thinking.  That and the tragic passing of a former student this past week in a plane crash.  Yes, we do influence our students.  It might not be until years later that we come to realize, often when they come back to visit, just what influence we had upon them.  In the twelve years that I have been in the classroom I figure that I have taught around 2,000 students.  Some of them I don’t even remember and some I remember all too well.  So, I know I have impacted many of them in what I hope are positive ways; I have spread my influence.

However, do we really stop to reflect on the influence that our students have upon us?  That is what I have reflected on this week, at least since Thursday morning when I heard the news.  Tiffany Porter was a member of the first class I ever taught in 2000.  She was a junior in a very small private school in Eutaw, AL.  I fell in love with the town and kids.  It was a small school and I built many long-lasting relationships in my two years there.  I have formed long-lasting relationships with many students through the years, but I think it is always that first class that teachers hold the dearest in their hearts.  I definitely do.

Tiffany had a beautiful smile, as can be seen in the picture above, and a sweet personality.  She was a beautiful girl inside and out. She always came in to the classroom with a smile and somewhere in the 45 minutes or so she was there she was going to have me laughing at some point.  She just had that type of bubbly personality and it was infectious.  It’s been ten years since she graduated and I left for another position, but that class has stayed near my heart and I have kept up with many of them through the years and watched them graduate college, start careers, get married and begin families.  Tiffany remained somewhat a free spirit, pursuing her dreams, and living life to the fullest. Her influence upon me was that it was okay to smile through what ever troubles you were having because everything had a silver lining.  You just had to find it.  So, for that Tiffany, I thank you.

She may not be here on Earth anymore, but her influence and impact on her family and many friends, as well as the many patients she saw in her career will be long-lasting.  Tiffany, I love you and will always hold you dear to my heart!