The Sunrise Story

At a conference this weekend, I heard a speaker say that writers see and experience the world differently. Something happens and it becomes fodder for our notebooks (or blogs). We see life as a series of stories. I agree with this characterization and I feel grateful that I am a writer. My friend, Christine, is also a writer. We met as writers in a writing group more than ten years ago! Our words connected us immediately and they still do years later. Words are sacred to us. We notice them. We share them. We ask for feedback when we write them. Words are sacred and it seems that only writers truly understand that relationship. Christine lives far away now and we rarely get to see each other, but our friendship remains strong through the sharing of our words. Words from my friend mean so much to me. They lift me when I'm down. They show me who I am when I forget. They guide me to better places. They keep me company when I'm alone. Here are some words shared between us...

My time at NCTE in Atlanta changed me. Travel does that to me. Visiting a new place and meeting new people, seeing the world through a new lens...it's overwhelming and powerful. I've needed time to marinate about my experiences before I wrote about them. Conversations. I spent lots of time in conversations that challenged me as a teacher, as a woman, as a person...they pushed me to ask questions, to do better, to be better! One night, I had dinner at a food court in a local mall with two teacher friends. We spoke at length about the world and as we left I felt uplifted and inspired. Our experiences are so different and to get time to sit over burgers and ice cream and listen to each other...it's invaluable.   Connections. Hugs and tears. Everywhere I went, there were hugs to be given and received. Smiles exchanged and tears shed. We connected and promised to work hard to make this a world where all of our students are safe. In every session I attended, tears came fr...