New York City!

Oh My Goodness!! Here it is, the Big Apple. She is full of sights, sounds, people, and so much fun. We hit the ground running, the class of 2012 and I. We were all torn between crossing things off of our own bucket lists (I need to see Lady Liberty!, I need to shop!, I need to eat a _______!, I need to find David Letterman!) and sticking close together, knowing that we had just two days left to be together.

I joined the group heading to the "Top of the Rock" and was blown away! New York City is massive.  We had so much fun finding places that are part of the American experience, The Empire State Building, The Chrysler Building, Central Park, The Statue of Liberty, and St. Patrick's Cathedral and the list goes on and on. It is fun to run around with teachers.  Every few minutes, no matter who is leading the line, a teacher turns around to count to see if everyone is keeping up and to make sure he or she hasn't lost one.

Our time in NYC included some work for the Pearson Foundation, one of our sponsors. We needed to contribute our thoughts and a recording about 5 Things I Know about education. This was harder than it sounds. We all wanted to honor the work we all do in classrooms.  I wrote about what children need from childhood and supporting parents. As soon as my turn was over, I thought about what I forgot and just needed to let it go. We also had the opportunity to "debrief" with CCSSO (the Council of Chief State School Officers) about our year as Teachers of the Year. More on that later...

I knew I had to visit the 911 Memorial Site. I went with three other teachers. We each told the story of what it was like to teach on that day. The memorial knocked the wind out of me.  It is beautiful and gut wrenching at the same time.  It is hard to explain  how it felt to be there at night running my hands along all those names....so many, many names. The water crashes down and down again and it felt like it was pulling my heart right along with it.  I had been standing there alone for quite some time when my friends reminded me that there was a whole other pool.  I had forgotten, or maybe I never knew, I don't know but there it was. I will carry that experience with me for the rest of my life.

 

 

I was so moved by the story of the survivor tree that the volunteer told us. It was good to leave with a story of hope and promise at the end of a very emotional experience.