This is what kind of meat?

I informed all my students today that, not only is tomorrow the last day of classes before a week-long winter recess, it will also be my last day as their teacher. 

In fact, it will be my last day as anyone’s teacher for the foreseeable future.  I explained that at the end of the month I (along with Jeff and Miley) will be packing up our Queens apartment, and moving back to Los Angeles to be near my family.

The decision to quit my job and move across the country as been the easiest and at the same time most difficult decision I’ve ever made. I explained to my classes that between my four years of teaching and four years of college out of state, it’s been nearly a decade since I’ve been within 2,000 miles of my family.  Never before has that distance been as palpable as it is today.  For many different reasons, Jeff and I decided it would be best for us and certain members of my family to be near them despite the fact that we will miss all of our friends and our lives here in New York terribly.

To say that my students took this news well would be the biggest lie I’ve told since my days of dating the ladies in high school.  It broke my heart to see many of my students break down in tears, one of which had to spend the rest of the period with the guidance counselor :(  One of my more dramatic (read: fabulous) students threw himself from his desk and lay prostrate on the floor in overly dramatic grief.  It was surreal.  I didn’t think that they’d be happy to hear the news, but I had no idea they would take it so hard.  Seeing their little faces get all teary eyed of course got me all choked up, and I had to fight back the tears as I explained to them how difficult it would be for me to say good bye to them.

As emotionally draining as the day was, I still feel very positive about the experience.  Teaching is often a thankless job, filled with stressful days and many classes where one is left feeling defeated, deflated, and unappreciated.  For them to react so strongly to my resignation was in a way completely validating.  If ever I felt like I wasn’t making a difference in their lives or wasn’t being the role model and mentor I wanted them to see me as, today has shown me that my hard work and dedication in fact was appreciated and will be extremely missed.

I don’t know what tomorrow is going to be like, but I imagine it’s going to be one of the most difficult days in my teaching career.

When I first started teaching at the age of 23, I thought it was so crazy that people were going to be calling me Mr. Hall.  Now, at 27, I can’t believe that no one will call me that again for a long time.