Few of you may recognize the musician Tom T. Hall. Fewer still, the lyrics of the song, I Love. As a result of growing up with parents who loved country music, I recall the following words from this simple song:

"I love little baby ducks, old pick-up trucks, slow-moving trains, and rain.

I love little country streams, sleep without dreams, Sunday school in May,

And hay.

And I love you too."

Funny what things pop back into your brain in the month of February. This valentine month, I am proud to say in simple words that I love teachers. Enjoy the following thought provoking quotes in relation to the service of educators, including those on Sunday mornings ...

"A teacher affects eternity; he (or she) can never tell where his (or her) influence stops."

--Henry Brooks Adams

"Teachers, I believe, are the most responsible and important members of society because their professional efforts affect the fate of the earth."

--Helen Caldicott, author and peace activist

"The dream begins, most of the time, with a teacher who believes in you, who tugs and pushes and leads you on to the next plateau, sometimes poking you with a sharp stick called truth."

--Dan Rather

"There's no word in the language I revere more than 'teacher.' My heart sings when a kid refers to me as his teacher, and it always has. I've honored myself and the entire family of man by becoming a teacher."

--Pat Conroy, Prince of Tides

"The mediocre teacher tells. The good teacher explains. The superior teacher demonstrates. The great teacher inspires."

--William Arthur Ward

"The art of teaching is the art of assisting discovery."

--Mark Van Doren

"If you plan for a year, plant a seed. If for ten years, plant a tree. If for a hundred years, teach the people. When you sow a seed once, you will reap a single harvest. When you teach the people, you will reap a hundred harvests."

--Kuan Chung

We had an even 100 adults and children in the education wing this past January 13^th. This represents a wonderful set of grace-filled living beings. Thank you teachers for your gift of love toward those in your classes!!

Grace!

Bob

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