Reflections

I Knew Them Briefly

Our paths crossed
Our trails did entwine
For thirty-six weeks
They were partly mine.
They sensed my weaknesses
And I knew theirs well,
But pretty much
We learned to dwell
In decent harmony.
We shared some thoughts
And learned some skills,
I made some adjustments
To third-grader's wills
We've known each other
Only part of a year,
A precious short time
To have had them near.
I've known them briefly
A happy while
To have shared their childhood
Primary-style.

-Marion Kennedy

This is a poem by my great aunt, who passed away at the age of 95 a few weeks ago. I went to her memorial service yesterday, which was a celebration of the long life she led. Like I am studying to be, Marion was an elementary school teacher. This poem really spoke to me. I learned at the service yesterday that she wrote a lot of poems about different things including her teaching. She even wrote poems for her students, which I thought was a great idea. She had a stuffed elf that would be on a different student's desk each day, accompanied by a poem for the student. I felt very inspired after hearing all about my great aunt, and hope to lead in her footsteps and become a great teacher just like she was.