Replacements

Day 25

The other day after a session with my 3 year old client, I sighed and told my supervisor that I was going to miss the little guy. She smiled and said, “Oh, there’ll be replacements.”

I understand where she’s coming from. In a  lot of ways, that’s true. This fall, I’ll be busy in a speech-language classroom full of preschoolers who I’m sure will delight me, humble me, and make me want to pull my hair out at times. I’m tremendously eager to meet those kiddos. My days in the Reading Acquisition Program last fall, and my volunteer experiences with children elsewhere in Milwaukee have caused me to realize how much I love little ones.

I love their zest for life, their insatiable appetite for exploring and discovering. I love their lack of “coolness”, their lack of desire to be cool.

And I love their individuality.

Which is why I half-winced at the word “replacements”. I know I’m just at the start of my career. I’m naive. I’m idealistic. But is that the attitude some teachers (or in my case, some SLPs) have? Is that the attitude I’ll have after several years in a school (if I do indeed end up as a school SLP)? Will my clients become small seat-warmers who fill my work-days and are simply replaced each school term?

Honestly, I hope not. I hope that years down the road I will still realize that each of my kids is a precious soul Jesus died for. I hope that I will enjoy their God-given uniqueness.

I hope I will still miss them when they leave.