I think today at the John Tracy Clinic was the shortest Friday of all, because it just flew by. It was wise for me not to wear any makeup, because the tears flowed freely. We enjoyed our last circle time with our kids, had a few closing remarks from the wonderful people who organized our adventure, then had a support group meeting with the entire group, where we were given the opportunity to say our closing remarks. We then went to a lovely closing ceremony where we all got certificates and some closing remarks. We picked up our kids, headed to the big tree, and had one last photo taken. Then we said our farewells.
We all expressed open door policies to everyone in the group, so there might be some future reunions in various parts of the world. But if not, we will all stay in touch through facebook or e-mail or some other media. One thing's for sure though, we will never forget the friendships we've forged over the last 3 weeks. Living together in the same apartment building and spending valuable time on the lawn in the evenings brought our lives together for these 3 weeks with one common theme - to help our d/hh kiddos reach their fullest potential, and make sure that we are the most informed part of that equation. We especially cherished those evenings on the lawn when our kids could just be kids without any explanations or funny looks and we could talk about anything we wanted, including hearing loss.
We've said our goodbyes, expressed our immense gratitude and now we are packing and cleaning up while Lucas takes a nap. We are off to a hotel for the weekend, and we fly back on Sunday. It feels strange to leave our home-away-from-home and go to a hotel. We feel happy and empowered to take on the world and spread what we've learned. As the tip of the day said today:
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4 comments:
Thanks for sharing your three weeks at the wonderful JTC with us. I was so excited to read about your experience there. Words can almost not describe the impact that JTC and new friendships have had on our life, and I'm sure the same is true for you! Good luck on a smooth transition home, and I look forward to hearing your story from here.
I'm impressed- you already have your blog updated! I probably won't update ours until we get home. I am so wiped out!
We will miss you guys, though we're definitely planning a reunion- whether at your house or in State College!
Nolan just told me, "Lucas is sleeping." He misses him already!
hello fellow jtc graduates! just wanted to send a quick note to say good-bye if that sounds weird, we missed a hug under the tree after the photo friday. hope you all made it home safely. we`re home too after a whirlwind drive north. exhausting but worth it to be sleeping in my very large bed again :) we`re already going thru jtc withdrawal, wanting to keep the connection alive. hope to stay in touch xxx
Hello fellow JTC grads! Missing the centre and all of you already, so I'm checking out your blogs. Hope you made it home safely, we did after a crazy long drive north. Loved meeting you guys, hope to stay in touch - Jawohl!
xxx
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