End-of-the-school-year blues

That's right; I said blues. As much as we teachers like to think that the end of school is liberating and a time for rejuvenation before another school year starts, it is equally a time of melancholy and bittersweet reminiscence.
Every year, there's another batch of kids that I grow close to. And every year, that group moves on and new students who have just as many positive assets come through my door the next fall. Even so, there are parts and pieces of every student that I will miss, though some moreso than others.
I think of Chris, who came to my classroom at least 10 minutes early every day before first period, just to talk and dissect life's issues. He'd come wheeling up on his California-style skateboard, his grown-out mohawk flapping in the breeze. Propping up his board against the back counter in my room, he'd then sit down with his unspilled cup of coffee.
Then, this 15-year-old caffeine addict and I would re-hash some of the recent campus events, and I'd weave him a few tales from my younger days that usually somehow related to our discussions. From water balloons to the negative side effects of smoking, there weren't too many topics that we didn't cover. Politics and religion, while taboo to most adults, were not unexplored by us, and we came to the consensus that, if everyone just sat down and talked things out like we did, we could manage to achieve world peace.
Yeah, I'll miss Chris, but next year is coming, and I'm sure there will be some new Chris, Joe, Lacey, or Mandy among the bunch that I will once again grow fairly attached to before June rolls around once more, and I have to bid them goodbye as well. Nonetheless, seeing your special kids move on is, in its own way, both rewarding and depressing. At least summer vacation will be here soon, and my mind and body will travel to other places. For now, a simple blog is the best I can do to commemorate those students who have been more than just pupils, they've also been some of my best teachers. Thanks for the lessons, guys, and best wishes for the future.