Dear Jodi,
I have been in education for about 30 years, and during that time I have worked alongside, supervised, and taught hundreds of teachers: some bad, most pretty good, and a relative handful who were special. You are definitely in that final category, and shine even among the best. I recall telling you on several occasions that I wish my own kids had had the privilege of having you as a teacher, and I can't give you a higher professional compliment than that. You knew your subject, prepared meticulously, and did great projects like leading your students to turn your room into the galaxy for the lower school kids to tour. Perhaps most importantly, you had high expectations of your students, and loved them enough to hold them to your standards.
The expectations you had for your students, while important, only hint at what really characterizes you as a woman and child of God. I believe your standards originate in your faith that we are all created in God's image, and are therefore called to do our best to live up to His design for us. You saw your students, all of them, as capable of giving their best, and you demanded it of them because you cared.
God instructs us to love others as we love ourselves, and you certainly did so. How do I know? Because you held yourself and your own, beloved, children to those same standards. I never walked by your room without seeing the students busily engaged in learning, and you leading them. I never corrected your own kids (Hey, Ava Mei. Hey, Bob. Hey, Henry. Love y'all.) without you and/or Dave thanking me for doing so. You want the best from yourself and your own, just as you did from your students.
But your sharing knowledge, love, and a dry wit with middle schoolers is not the sum of who you are. To quote the late, great, C.S. Lewis: "Who will give me words?" I'm afraid they don't exist, because I am now contemplating how to describe the example you and Dave have set. The love for one another, and faith in Christ, from both of you defies description. I am certainly unequal to the task. But please know, and take what comfort you may, from the fact that your marriage and your mutual trust in God is an inspiration to all who know you. The respect and admiration you showed for each other, under the lordship of Christ, is beautiful to behold. May we all pay attention to your example, and may God bless you with a peace that surpasses all understanding, my friend and sister in Christ.
