“It was my first year teaching at a new school. Cristina was...

“It was my first year teaching at a new school. Cristina was only an eighth grader, but she was in my enhanced math class. We didn’t bond much that year. Partly because she didn’t need my help. But mainly because I was so frazzled. Being a new teacher is rough. You’re dealing with students from all different backgrounds. You’re trying to teach them the quadratic formula. But also to be a good person, and navigate life. On top of it all you’re having to navigate school politics. So it always seems like there’s a fire to be put out. Sometimes I’d stay late trying to finish extra work, and that’s when Cristina came wandering in. By that time she was a freshman. And she was heartbroken, because she’d just gotten a ‘D’ on a math test. She’d hit a wall. So I gave her practice problems to do on the whiteboard. I enjoyed having her around. It was nice to have someone else in the classroom. And even when she didn’t need my help anymore, she kept coming anyway. We kept up the tradition for four years. We’d put on country music. Then we’d sit on opposite sides of the room and do our work. She went from thirteen to eighteen in my classroom. I watched her grow up. Our conversations matured. We started talking about college. And what she wanted to do with her life. We talked about her first boyfriend. And her first breakup. I got to see it all. Whenever a new class would graduate, it was so sad to see the kids leave. But in the back of my mind, I’d always say: ‘At least Cristina is only in 9th. At least Cristina is only in 10th. At least Cristina is only in 11th.’ But this year her class finally graduated. I knew the moment would come, but it’s still tough. Because they’re the first class that spent all four years with me. They watched me grow. They saw me on my very first day. They saw me come back one summer with a new last name. They were with me when I figured it all out, and they were so smart that they succeeded anyway. Cristina graduated as the valedictorian. She’ll be going to the University of Pennsylvania next year. She wants to be a nurse. And I’m just so proud of her. It’s been such an honor to watch her grow. And I can’t wait to see what she does next.”