As the holidays are approaching Ariana and I decided we wanted to plan a holiday craft for our kids in the art room. After spending what seemed like hours on pinterest we decided to have them decorate snowflakes that they could hang up at school or take home. I spent like an hour cutting out snowflakes in the library instead of doing work(destressingggg), picked up glitter glue, pompoms, and pipe cleaners to decorate. The kids loved it, as did Ms. Sarah and Ms. Stacy. There was glitter all of the table and all over me and pom poms were all over the floor, but I loved it. There was a smile on every child’s face. Ms. Sarah and Ms. Stacy, loved the idea so much that they asked us how we thought they could translate this craft into an idea for one of their kindergarten classes. I was so happy that they appreciated the time that we put in in order to make their school community a little happier during the holidays.

As it is the holiday season, Ariana decided it would be a good idea to get Ms.Stacy and Ms. Sarah little gifts as a thank you for everything they do for the kids and for the programs they run. We gave Ms. Stacy hers first she was overwhelmed with happiness and told us how grateful she was for all the help the Cornell kids provide her program and how lucky she feels to be a part of it now matter how stressful it is at times. She was desperate to know if Ariana and I would be back the next semester. We gave Ms. Sarah he gift at the end of the class, her reaction is the reason I wrote this blog post. She immediately broke into tears and I could just how much of an impact Ariana and I had made in her life just after 6 weeks, of seeing her. She could barely find the worlds to explain how she felt, but the tears were enough.

To me this semester long experience has been more than I had hoped it would be. I thought it would be a relaxing experience where I got to help kids out with homework or do arts and crafts. And that did happen, I have done plenty of arts and crafts but I have also made lifelong memories about Ms. Sarah and the community at BJM.