For a Very Special Teacher, a Simple ‘Thank You’ Won’t Do

My son had an incredible team of people working with him this year in Kindergarten. Friday is the last day of school and this is the note I wrote to go along with the gift for his aide, who also supports another child in the same class. A act of pure serendipity brought her into our lives (and a smart administration kept her there), but we could not have come up with a better plan had we been purposeful. She was a gift from the universe.

Thank you for crossing my path that day in September and truly listening to what I had to say.

Thank you for always believing in my son.

Thank you for helping him go from “barely making it” to “thriving.”

Thank you for helping him love Greek class. And math. And reading. And everything.

Thank you for cleaning up applesauce, pee, milk, crumbs, smoothies and for catching his puke in a trash can.

Thank you for the Potty Tinkle Dance and for lying on the bathroom floor for his sake (please don’t do that again without a HazMat suit).

Thank you for helping him be a good friend.

Thank you for knowing that when he says “I hate you,” it really means, just give me a minute here.

Thank you for appreciating his sense of humor.

Thank you for stepping away to give him independence and then stepping back in at just the right moment to help.

Thank you for fostering pride in himself.

Thank you for teaching him how to be an “excellent” zipperer

When you have Down syndrome, so much depends on being supported by the right person. Thank you for being the best “right person” there is.

I have one wish: that every day heaven will break open just a little and rain down special blessings for you and your family.