Five forever

In my mind they will be 5-years-old forever.

The years will pass, milestones will occur and inevitably they will probably forget all about me, but I will always remember them. Their faces will forever be etched in my memory as 5-year-olds running through the playground and sliding down the slide.

I worked at a preschool for the majority of the school year as a paraeducator until I took another position. I had never worked in a school setting before. My previous job had been as a newspaper editor with a daily newspaper for 11 ½ years – that's all I really knew or so I thought. There were good days and bad days – periods of adjustment for me and for them.

I will never forget greeting them for the first time when they came off the school bus. They looked so small, but ready to take on the world with their new backpacks and shiny shoes.

I never went to preschool – it wasn't very popular back in 1980 when I was 4-years-old. My first introduction to school was a half day of kindergarten in a small class that met in the afternoon. My teacher was Mrs. Mattan, who I ironically had again in second grade.

I don't remember too much about kindergarten except show-and-tell. I brought my ceramic kitty that my mother made for me. Unfortunately, it was dropped by one of my classmates. I was devastated. I was even more devastated for my mother who made it. Mrs. Mattan felt bad too. So bad, in fact, that she took the kitty home and glued her back together – talk about an awesome teacher. And for that act of kindness, I have never forgotten Mrs. Mattan. I still have the kitty wrapped up and stored away with the rest of my childhood toys.

So, as the year progressed, I wanted to spread a little bit of Mrs. Mattan's kindness on to my own preschoolers. I enjoyed making snowmen out of Playdough complete with a hat, scarf and smile on his face. It may have been a little over the top in September, but who cares.

One of my favorite units involved puppets. We had shadow puppets, which I cut out, and regular puppets. For example, there were character puppets for “Little Red Riding Hood,” “The Three Billy Goats Gruff,” and “The Three Little Pigs.” I loved playing the troll from “The Three Billy Goats Gruff” and I think the kids did too. I lowered my voice and called the kids by name, which they thought was hilarious. This brought back fond memories from my childhood when my dad played with me. I had a Miss Piggy and Ernie puppet. After supper, my dad would sit in his recliner and talk to me through the puppets.

I will never forget the last day of preschool. I wanted to memorize each child's face so I would always remember them. And, I hoped deep down inside, that maybe just maybe, they would remember me too. So, I made it a point to put their graduation date on my calendar.

When I walked into the church that day, I couldn't believe how much bigger and older they were compared to that first day I welcomed them off the bus. One little girl spotted me right away and waved, “Oh, Ms. Angie I just knew you would come.” It took every ounce of my being not to cry.

As I sat in the pew and watched each child walk up the aisle in their cap and gown, I was overcome with emotion. I was so proud of everything they had accomplished and a little sad I had not been there until the end.

After the ceremony, there was a reception for the kids and their families. I stood off to the side, but a group of them saw me and yelled, “Ms. Angie, Ms. Angie – there she is.” And with that, one little girl ran over to me and hugged my legs saying how she much she missed me. It was very difficult not to start crying when I bent over to hug her.

As I left, another little girl reached out and grabbed me after she had her picture taken with her Mom. “Oh Ms. Angie I missed you. I want my picture with Ms. Angie.” So, I picked her up and smiled for the camera. I told her how proud I was of her and how much I missed her too.

I guess I made more of an impression on the kids than I thought – they didn't forget me after all. As the years pass, maybe one or two will remember me like I remember Mrs. Mattan. It's hard to say. But, in the end, I will never forget the preschool class of 2015.