Chapter 6: The Return: To the Place where it All Came Together

It was a beautiful June morning; the sun was shining bright. What a perfect day for a visit. In fact, this was my first visit back to the School. The place that became more than a “job” for me, but an extended family in a sense for more than 25 years. Today, I return.

I return for the annual “Moving Up Ceremony” at Children’s Workshop School (CWS)—the ceremony where we lift-up, celebrate, and say good-bye to our fifth graders as they move on to Middle School. I would be returning to the School after a year of being gone. I arrived at the building just as the Ceremony was beginning to start and made my way to the back of the auditorium where I sat quietly, prepared to enjoy the ceremony, and see all the children I had known since they were in Pre-K. It felt good to be back in the School … kinda like the building had given me a warm hug as I entered this very familiar space.