Thank You
-Gwen Foote
Thank you, Dad and Mom for giving me
life and many things I needed to survive and thrive in this world.
You didn’t have much growing up, poor.
You always taught us family came first.
In a very large family of brothers, sisters, uncles, aunts, and cousins.
My parents gave us more than material items.
They gave us teachings.
They taught us skills and strategies, growing and dealing in life.
They loved us, –even if they didn’t always say it.
They taught us to believe in ourselves.
-empowered us,
-to follow our dreams and ambitions.
-to raise our children
They instilled in us, traditions and values
-to better our own lives
-to pursue our destiny
-to touch others in a positive way
-to affect the world hopefully improving our little corner of it.
Children now have a difficult path to follow.
I have tremendous respect for the children growing up in the world today.
Children each go through their own hell.
Growing, hopefully developing into adults.
I hope I pass on a little of what my parents gave to me-
A way of surviving and thriving in their own lives
To pursue their dreams and ambitions to:
Achieve each of their destinies
Raise their children
Leave this world a little better, at least our corner of it.
We owe our children.
Our own, and those we teach.
We owe it to them and need to
Believe in them, and teach them
values of tradition, by living it ourselves, in truth.
Reading, writing and the abilities in academics is important,
But we also owe it to them
To learn Compassion, integrity, generosity, understanding, courage
So they may achieve their own wisdom.
Many children today grow up touched by alcoholism, drug abuse, and forms of abuse
Lost in the chaos of the world
In our own adult dramas and traumas.
Some have no mother or father or both, maybe lucky enough to have grandparents.
I hope I touch the lives of children; to teach in the way I live and interact with them.
Every day is a lesson and how I walk my path, I do so to reach my destiny.
I hope I affect my students by my dedication to them.
To show them compassion, understanding, patience, hope, happiness, and love
And how they can find their own in their hearts and lives.
They have a difficult road ahead of them in this world today.
I hope I may empower them, to follow their dreams and ambitions
To become who they are and all they can be;
To love and laugh with each other.
I owe it to them.
We owe it to them.
As family, teachers, adults in this world.
We are their care givers and they need to be cared for and about,
To believe in themselves, to be able to pursue their happiness and destiny.
To raise their own children, with discipline and love
Whether through blood, students, or Human Beings touching each others’ lives.
We owe it to these children to love, understand, empower, and believe in them.
I hope I have affected them, and continue to, in a way to help them as Human Beings
To find in themselves, their strength, courage, and wisdom.
As they are so much more them I am or ever can be.
We owe it to them because,
Children should come first and always.
Without them, we are nothing.
Thank you .
Gwendolyn's Foote Prints 
