The Lessons Students Can Teach Us!

Friday night something special happened, something that I believe needs to happen much more frequently. Now I want to do justice to the event as it has meaning for everyone involved in it. However I believe this one moment in time should be more of a lesson to all of us than an incredible experience for a young man, his family and his community. I think what this amazing young man has done should be more about the lessons we can learn from him and make strides to create these experiences for everyone in our lives much more frequently.

I know Noah, and say "Hi" to this young man on a daily basis. He is always so positive, upbeat, and a character with his seemingly endless number of stories. Noah is a beloved young man in this community. Whether his classmates and teachers truly realize it, Noah is teaching us lessons everyday. Noah has connected a community, a school, and individuals. He has allowed us to share in his life, his struggles and his accomplishments. When interacting with Noah, I find myself slowing down not wanting to miss anything he is going to share with me during that brief encounter. He teaches me patience, enthusiasm and passion. He is filled with excitement and joy every time I see him. I often find myself wondering how he is able to always be so happy when I am running around often stressed about not getting things done. When I have a free moment, I reflect on things in my life, and with the events of Friday, I again found myself thinking about priorities. Noah has reminded me of the things that are important. The relationships in my life, the things that make me happy and the compassion for others.

Noah's experience is as unique as every individual on this planet. Noah, like all of us has good days and bad days, things we like and dislike. We all have challenges in our lives, and what I really am left with after getting to know Noah and Friday night's amazing tribute is one simple lesson. There are many more people like Noah out there who need to have an opportunity to shine. There are many more of our students, friends, classmates that have unique struggles that need to be accepted and cherished in similar ways as we have with Noah this weekend and during his time here.

I hope my message is clear thus far. I am so grateful to my colleagues, coaches, staff members who helped create this opportunity. I just found out it was the idea of the students, his teammates to put this together, and make this tribute to happen. I think it is a wonderful experience for Noah and his family. I also want all of us to be reminded that Noah isn't the only person among us who needs or deserves to be treated as a superstar. I hope we take Noah's experience and build upon it. We look for other opportunities to showcase our students, classmates, colleagues, family and friends.

Here is the link to the story and video. I commend the local news station for doing a wonderful job of telling Noah's story and giving him his due. NOAH'S STORY