Thank You, Lord

We are now two weeks or so into the school year, and I've got to say that these are some of the nicest students I've had in a long time. They are obedient. They are thoughtful. They are friendly. They are supportive and loving to their fellow students who have developmental delays. They are trying to reassure the new kid from the Middle East who is afraid he's going to fail because he can't do the work that they are doing yet.

Even better, they laugh at my history-geek puns, jokes, and weird stories.

They have willingly taken all the notes I've required with no complaints and they have made sure that my discussions are not lectures, but discussions, and they have asked some really good questions. They have dedicated themselves to learning my word of the day each day and even have used them back to me in assignments without being asked: confluence, caveat, libertarian. They have gently chastised their fellow students who have asked me to repeat something right after I've said it, so that I don't have to.

I give these kids, their parents, and their former teachers the credit. A small voice inside me whispers, "Too good to be true!" but I've basically told that small part to shut the heck up.