Every morning, I arrive at school about 15 minutes before the bell. One of my students depends on me to get there in time so she can get her math book and get on the bus to our other campus in time for her first period class. Usually I make it; some days, I advise her to start keeping her books elsewhere!
Today, the moment she came around the corner and caught my eye, just as I was unlocking my office door, she started to sob. Her friend, a former boyfriend of hers and a former student at our school, has been struggling with a very serious medical condition that has required multiple brain surgeries, and she had been told that he had taken a turn for the worse.
I held her for a little bit while she cried, and then she gathered her books and went to catch the bus, leaving me a little stunned in her wake.... but I too gathered my books and started my day.