“Hey Chris.” 

That was how the email began from Keith – a student I had taught over thirty years ago. I had been a new twenty-five year old high school English teacher just trying to stay a few pages ahead of the class. Keith had been a talented  eleventh grade musician trying to navigate the world immediately in front of him. In other words, we were both lost together.

We had been luckier than most – we were at an amazing school founded by an educator who believed learning was all about developing strong relationships. It was a place where students and teachers called each other by their first names, where the kids played music out of the back of their cars during lunch, and where shoes were very optional.

I responded to the email at once – of course. “Wonderful to hear from you” I opened. A few exchanges and we had set a date to meet the next morning at Nauset Beach. Driving home, the world made sense. The year of COVID had left me exhausted and worrying if we could ever recapture the wonder that had drawn me to education. That email let me know the magic was very much alive. 

The next morning my family and I made our way across the sand to our regular spot beyond the crowd. We set up chairs and our umbrella, took our first plunge, and settled in for a morning of watching the tide rise.

To be honest, I was a bit nervous. How would I recognize him? I remembered long hair – what if that had changed. I knew I certainly did not look twenty-five anymore. What would we talk about? Would we find ourselves standing awkwardly twisting our feet ankle deep into the sand with no escape from what had seemed like a good idea at the time of the emailing?  

Fumbling through my bag for a book, I heard a voice. “Are you the Ellsasser’s? I looked up. I recognized the face immediately. I stood up. We hugged and started talking like no time had passed. Introductions all around. Stories of English class, books read, conversations had. Abridged version of our lived histories over the last three decades. Laughter, smiles, and the unspoken appreciation for a school that made possible a relationship with the strength to survive across time and geography. Over thirty years and three thousand miles we had somehow found ourselves on Nauset Beach. At the end of his graduation ceremony at that school in sunny southern California, I had told him he had to visit my hometown beach of Nauset when he was off studying music in Boston. Who could have imagined then how we would come together this August morning?

This past year has been so difficult for so many. For teachers and their students the hardest thing has been not being able to share the common space of the classroom. I am so excited that we will be returning to classrooms together. In my current role as Principal, my greatest hope for my teachers and their students is that our school makes it possible for them to connect and stay connected no matter what happens, no matter where they travel, and not matter how much time passes.

Peace,

Chris