"Extenuating Circumstances"

I can't say much about student teaching for this past week. I was only there 2 days. I went Monday and Tuesday. All my sick days were used up Wednesday-Friday. I can barely remember what happened. Monday was a normal day. Tuesday was Valentine's Day so there was the hectic rush to get the Drill Squad's fundraising project completed and out. Honestly, last week was a blur.

I had been feeling really sick for the past 3-4 weeks, so since my students were going on a field trip, I took the chance to go to the doctor. I had been nauseous constantly, not hungry, and feeling pain in my abdomen. It progressively got worse; I knew I had to get it looked at. Wednesday, I woke up feeling worse than I had before. My appointment was in the afternoon so I got to rest before going. When I got there, Dr. Martin told me he thought it was my gallbladder and schedule two tests for the next day. I couldn't get anyone to cover for me at work, so I sucked it up and went. During my shift, I found out a dear friend of mine was going to die that night.

Debbie battled CF all her life. Debbie was the most inspiration, beautiful, and loving person I've ever had the privilege to meet. She never let her sickness define her. She embraced life and all the people who surrounded her. Throughout her 27 years, she maintained a positive attitude and never lost hope. Her honesty, attitude, and integrity taught me a lot.

After all of this, Thursday I went have the tests run and Friday my teacher told me not to worry about going. She said I only had to go if I wanted to. I'm so thankful for her compassion and sincere understanding. My tests came back normal, but the pain is still there.

This week is Mardi Gras so I'll only be at NHS 2 days again. I don't even know where we're at in the lesson. I have a broad idea, but as for as the specifics, no clue. It'll require a brief catch-up period, but I have no doubt I'll be able to catch up and teach through all that's going on. At the very least, this ordeal has literally taught me to always show compassion and understanding when a student experiences a tragedy. Through this, I'll be able to relate and sympathize.