"We should hang out sometime."

Today was 8th grade promotion picture day. I love this day because the kids come to school in their super fancy clothes looking all grown up. So naturally, I need to get a picture of them, them - as in the remaining kids from the class I taught last year. It was a seven-eight combo ELA class that looped, except we didn't reschedule that class again this year. So all of the kids I had, who are all eighth graders this year, are scattered across a few different ELA classes. 

During lunch, I went to the multipurpose room and got on the mike, "If you were in my BB3 class last year, meet me in the hall." I assumed I would have to go back in and take a long time to find all of them, so I was surprised when I walked up to the door and they were mostly all huddled together already.

"Who is missing?" I asked as we made our way into the hallway.

A few of them said, "Ayden isn't here," and then I sent them off to find him.

As I was organizing them for a good picture, so that I could see all their faces, they noticed Chris was missing, so someone ran off to grab him. And then they just started catching up, by no means prompted by me.

"Ms. Brezek! I was going through this folder I found under my bed. I found that picture you gave us last year."

Someone else chimed in, "I still have mine, too!"

And another, "And I have the book of poetry we made at the end of the year."

"We should hang out sometime," Jacob announced.

My heart melted.

Here was half of an ELA class, who are now all split up, asking to make time to see one another. Last year, they were not exactly fans of ELA. They had half of their class comprised by kids one year older than them, *and they had to alternate seventh and eighth grade lunch.

And now they miss one another.

We snapped a pic, and they immediately asked to see it. "I'll bring you a copy tomorrow, to add to your collection," I assured them, and back to lunch they went.

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