John 15:13

"Greater love hath no man than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends."

People all around the Quad Cities have been captivated by the recent death of U.S. Army Cpl. Jason Pautsch - a 20 year old Davenport native. It has been on the news, in the paper, on the internet - everywhere we look, we are reminded.

Today, my class and I were discussing current events and this one obviously came up, as it is something that makes the war real to them. I have to be honest, it was really hard for me to discuss this with my students today. Tears formed in my eyes more than once hearing them talk about and realize the magnitude of life, or the loss of life. I have known since before I started this job that there would be many opportunities for me to help my students see the world through "new" eyes - but I was inspired by them today. I was inspired by their compassion for a man and his family - people they don't even know, and more by their respect for the sacrifice he made for our country, and specifically them.

They helped me to sort through my feelings and helped me to slow down for a minute. This war has been going on for so long that sometimes it just becomes "something that's happening an entire world away from us", "something that other cities, other states, other families, other communities have to deal with", "something that is part of life". In reality, that's not the case at all. My twenty-seven 11-year-olds helped me to slow down and remember that this war is something we all need to think about, and that the men and women fighting this war for us are making an enormous sacrifice so that we may live in safety.

I am more thankful than ever today for Cpl. Jason Pautsch and the countless other men and women who have fought this battle. As one of my fifth graders (we'll just call him T) said today, "It's just so great that someone else would put their life on the line so that I can go to sleep in my bed tonight knowing that I'm safe."

Pretty much sums it all up right there.