I write this on June 5, exactly one month since the last time I put on the brown plaid kilt, tied my sweater around my waist, and sat in a green-bricked, pod-filled classroom. With the excitement and stress of exams, graduation, and my senior trip out of the way, it is slowly starting to hit me that I won't be going back to MCA next year, and I'm realizing what a blessing all of my teachers have been to me. Even after only a month of being gone, I'm truly beginning to miss these five years that y'all gave to me, and I want to thank you for everything that y'all have given to me and done for me.

Thank you for laughing at my lame jokes.

I know I'm not that funny, but thank y'all for continuing to laugh and shake your heads at the comments I would make during class. You not only encouraged further jokes, but gave me an example to point to when my friends wanted to punch me after I told a bad joke.

Thank you for pulling me aside or emailing me after a class when you could see that I just wasn't acting like myself.

Throughout so much of this year, I truly just needed to know that somebody cared. And you never failed to prove that to me.

Thank you for hugging me when I cried.

Or giving me a piece of caramel, as they both worked magic. You saw that I needed it, and you did the best thing anyone could do — you were there.

Thank you for opening my mind to new ideas, notions, and opinions that I had never before considered.

You changed my way of thinking and viewing the world, and you made me a better, more compassionate and loving person.

Thank you for giving me second chances.

When you could see I was having a hard week or struggling with a concept, thank you for the hours during lunch and after school you spent with me. For all the extensions you gave me, the extra credit you awarded me, and the do-overs you allotted me, thank you.

Thank you for dealing with my anxiety-stricken, coffee-fueled, 3 a.m. emails and my hyper, constantly nervous self.

And thank you for only laughing at my abnormal amount of energy behind my back.

Thank you for believing in me.

especially when I never believed in myself. Whenever I would doubt myself or my abilities, you were always there to keep me in check, push me to work my hardest, and make sure that I knew what I capable of. Knowing that someone else believed in me gave me the confidence that I needed to succeed.

Thank you for always being there for me.

For listening to my rants, giving me advice, and allowing me the opportunity to learn from your mistakes, thank you.

You have given me so much, both inside and outside of the classroom. As I begin to get ready for college, I still remember the lessons you taught me and the familiar classrooms that were my home. You were role models to me, and you displayed the essence of putting others before yourself. I'm so honored to have been able to look up to you and be a student of yours. Don't miss me too much — I'll be back to visit over vacation!