2.1.24

I beheld a wonderful thing today.

While my students were out to recess, there was a mild hubbub in the hallway. A good sort of hubbub, which is always nice. Especially in the middle of winter with 16 more days of school until winter break.

As it turned out, a couple of students had a dad returning from a long stretch of military service. He came to school to surprise them, as they weren’t expecting to see him for a few more days.

One of his kids is in my teaching partner’s class next door and was still outside playing with his friends, so dad, mom, and their daughter (who had already been surprised) hung out in my classroom until recess was over. When my students came down the hall, I quietly explained what was happening, and they quietly went in and didn’t make a big deal out of seeing their friends’ father.

After my partner’s kiddos got settled in for silent reading next door, dad quietly walked through the space connecting our classrooms, gently pulled out the seat next to his son, and sat down. The boy was engrossed in his silent reading and was unaware of dad’s presence.

Dad reached out and gave a gentle pat on his son’s shoulder. The boy turned and saw him. It took a few beats for him to process who was sitting next to him.

Then it clicked.

The boy cried out with excitement, threw his arms around his father, and sobbed. They sat, embracing for what felt like a warm, beautiful version of forever. Little sister got overwhelmed and started to cry, then quickly pulled her toque down over her face to cover up the tears. And mom looked on with the sort of expression that can only be described as a powerful mixture of happy, content, and overwhelmed in a good way.

They cried. We teachers cried. Students cried. It was a big moment for happy crying in our classrooms.

I didn’t have to think much about the song I’d write about tonight. It started playing in my head when I saw dad look set eyes on his son for the first time in many many months. It’s a song I was talking about just a few days ago.

This version — a cover of Cyndi Lauper’s classic 1983 pop ballad — is performed by Ava Cassidy, a singer taken from the world far too soon. It’s from the album Time After Time, a collection of covers performed by Cassidy and released in 2000, four years after her untimely death due to melanoma.

Lauper’s version of the song is very much a perfect product of the time it was created. Cassidy’s rendition is timeless, her vocals allowing Lauper’s lyrics to transcend not just time, but age.

As we go through our days, we rely on those who will show up for us without being asked, especially during the times we don’t expect it. It’s a wonderful thing to possess the knowledge that someone is there for you.

Today, I got to watch a boy learn that lesson. Not with a friend, but from a parent.

Of course I cried. How could I not?

If you’re lost, you can look and you will find me

Time after time

If you fall, I will catch you, I’ll be waiting

Time after time