1) Responsible adults show up faithfully, on time, and prepared each day for work.

2) Some adults love their areas of expertise, some love those they serve, and some love both.

3) Some adults have lost whatever passion got them into their fields in the first place and are now just slow-walking to the exit.

4) Fads are found in every area of life: Remember schools that were "open concept" long before HGTV popularized tearing down walls in our homes?

5) Likeability, beauty, and athletic prowess can only paper over incompetence for so long - eventually the wallpaper peels away.

6) Expecting everyone to succeed at any one activity is unrealistic - whether that activity is math, public speaking, or woodshop.

Corollary: Expecting everyone to look good in one suit of clothing is laughable.  If, however, the goal was to humiliate most students who put on a gym outfit, then mission accomplished.

7) Sometimes it is difficult to discern the difference between falling in love with a subject area and being mesmerized by a passionate communicator of that material (what I realized when I signed up for Chemistry 2).

8) Permanent records fade quickly - has anyone asked about your high school GPA or attendance record recently?

9) The ability to access information and knowing what to do with it once accessed are largely unrelated.

10) Just because someone will hire you to do something doesn't mean you should do it.

11) Sincere praise, and a commitment to identifying and developing the strengths of others is a sure way to leave a legacy.

12) Eating the same thing for lunch each day for 12 years is comforting to some.  "Thanks, Mom, for all of those PB&J sandwiches!"