26 days...Teaching # 2

Yes, I know.  I already posted once today.  What am I doing posting a second time today?

Well, oftentimes after I finish a post, my brain keeps thinking about other things I wanted to say, and this one was no exception.  While I normally ignore those inklings, I can't in this case.  There are too many people I want to thank.  And while I know I am going to miss some, I want to do my best to highlight some special people.

For example, I have family and friends who are long-time teachers.  My sister, J, and her husband, G, have taught lots of students through the years - from little ones all the way to graduate students.  Their daughter, A, teaches high school in Atlanta.  And a special young friend, J, teaches 6th grade here locally.  Thank you all for what you do to invest in the next generations.

I have other friends and family who homeschool, which is quite the calling and often misunderstood or even ridiculed.  But my friend, K, and a niece, J, are faithful to teach their children despite various challenges, including illness and fathers who travel frequently.  Thank you, ladies.  You inspire me.

I have business collegues who are also friends who have taught me much about business and how to do my job better.  P has shared much of her Excel geniusness skills with me.  Consultants that I met back in 2008, T, A, A and B were my first teachers in SAP.  And then there have been others, mainly B, who have taught me even more.  And I can't end this paragraph without also thanking two fine Southern gentlemen who I work with everyday to solve problems and make improvements.  P and A are great guys, and we all learn from each other nearly everyday.  Thank you all.  I owe each of you for being part of what success I enjoy in my career today.

I have also benefited from sitting under great teaching from Godly pastors and ministers like Darrin and Trey and Damien and Greg and Randall and Ron T. and Fred and Ron B. and even G's son, R, who leads his church in worship.  Yes, I did use full names for these fine gentlemen, because they are already public figures that some of you may know.  The job of a pastor takes huge amounts of courage and perseverance and tenacity and too often it is done without much thanks.  In fact, the opposite can be true - where they hear complaints more than thanks.  I want to land in the thanking camp for I know I am a kinder, more insightful person than I otherwise would be because of these leaders.  Thank you gentlemen for what you do, for teaching me even if you don't actually know or remember me today.  I will always remember each of you with gratitude.

I want to thank one other group of people before I close this post. I received an FB friend request from one of the directors at Delta Gamma today which was another reason I needed to post a second time today.  Memories and gratitude came flooding back of the care and teaching everyone associated with this find organization gave us almost 20 years ago now.  I had never heard of Delta Gamma, and my guess is many others have not either.  Until my youngest daughter, B, was born.  See she was born with a condition that includes legal blindness.  Delta Gamma provides therapy for children with visual impairments - across a wide spectrum of the sort of condition B has to children born with profound blindness.  And we were blessed to have been put in contact with this amazing team of people.  They are probably the first ambassadors of hope many parents and young children experience to help them learn to navigate this new world of low vision.  I could never find words enough to say thank you for the hope and teaching they imparted to us so many years ago.  B was given further teaching and assistance by others through the years and is still receiving assistance today, but there is a special place in my heart for those who cared for us when she was so little and we'd received this scary diagnosis.  I cannot type this, in fact, without tears in my eyes.  Thank you, Delta Gamma.

Yes, I am thankful for teachers.  Even the ones whose names may be escaping me at the moment.  My thankfulness almost always beats my memory.  So thank you.  Thank you, all.