Friendship is the inexpressible comfort of feeling safe with [another] person.
-- George Elliot. 
 
It was a beautiful hot summer, full of playing on the beach and splashing in a different lake almost every day. We were explorers, builders and swimmers. Fall brought a lot of fun, too. We discovered the Corn Maze and Minnesota Zoo. We played with pumpkins and tall leave piles. One night, the world changed to white. Winter put smiles on our faces, with sledding and games in the light fluff, with trips to museums and the library. We were very busy. Busy enough to stop missing the old home and all the things that we got to know in our three years of life that were no longer here. But, not busy enough to stop thinking about the friends we left behind. We tried the schools nearby. We did not fit in. There was not enough time to make friends. The teachers and kids did not understand us. Tedious and boring.
 
Slowly the spring passed and another summer. It was fall again. This time it brought St. David's Center. St. David's Center, where teachers listened and found a classroom perfect for us. Suddenly the school world was right again.
 
It was hard to imagine that when we made the necessary decision about moving our family across the country -- from Philadelphia to Minneapolis -- that it would be so very hard for our three-year-old boy. After all, Mommy and Daddy were still here. Well, it turned out to be a difficult experience. Sebastian adapted quickly enough to the new surroundings, new house, new yard and new playground. But, he was lonely. With a vivid imagination and a large vocabulary of an only child, he had a hard time connecting with his peers. And, he was quickly losing courage to approach them.
 
Thank you to our first-year teachers: Sue, Judy, Cassie and Mary, for listening and understanding. During this first year, Sebastian changed from a shy boy who did not know how to start a conversation with other kids to a well-adjusted, sure-of-himself adventurer. He did not only learn how to sign his name, cut with scissors and paint. But also how to enjoy time away from Mommy and Daddy, to love school and the field trips. Most importantly, he learned to believe in himself. He learned that he will be liked just the way he is. That he can make friends and does not need to be alone.
 
This change could only have been achieved with the help of attentive and attuned teachers. They were able to pair him with the right classmates, to support him and guide him through the process. It made Sebastian's experience at St. David's Center priceless.

 

Monika Miezianko

                     
        2007                          2009