I got some really sad news today...unfortunately this isn't the first time and won't be the last. When you teach young children, you never think that you may one day have to attend their funeral.
Myreke was a very happy kid with a winning smile. When I think of Myreke, all I can see is his smile. He was a sixth grader with behavioral issues...mostly impulse-control problems...never malicious. He probably had undiagnosed ADHD. He met with me every day before and after school to check in and check out. My job was to listen to him, counsel him, and get him ready for the day. Sometimes he didn't want to talk. He just wanted a hug and a sharpened pencil, then he would give me that amazing smile and go to class. Other times, it was hard to get him to leave at all. In the afternoon, he would tell me how his day went, and we would problem-solve. Did he make the best choices? What could he have done better? The next morning he would start fresh, all his mistakes made the day before were forgiven. This went on all school year. Then he moved, and I never saw him again. Six years went by.
Myreke was shot and killed. He was only 18. All his hopes and dreams are dead.
My heart is broken. He is one of many students that I have lost to the violence in the city or neglectful parents.
All I can see is his big smile...