The Best Part of NCTE

Thank you to Two Writing Teachers for hosting Slice of Life Tuesday.  Take a moment to visit their site to meander through other slices.  You are sure to enjoy the stories.

I am still reeling from NCTE.  It's always a good time, but this year's convention was the best.  The difference?  The people.  Old friends. New friends. Digging deeper friends.  Wrapping my arms around people I've never personally met, yet I know their stories friends.

The importance of community struck me over and over again those 4 days in D.C.  The stories woven throughout that community make it even stronger.  We find a common thread that binds us even closer, and for that I am so grateful.  This community's foundation lies in relationships built over coffee at Panera, laughter around the table, and for far away friends, Google Hangouts, Twitter, and blogs.  Many of my new friends were discovered on Tuesdays, right here at Slice of Life.

The stories sustain me, lift me, and carry me forward.  I am looking forward to hearing more stories and nurturing these friendships in the next year.

I was thrilled to see Margaret Simon receive the Donald Graves Award.

Happy Thanksgiving!



Comments

  1. Julie,
    Thank you for this post. I'm a new member of the Slice of Life community, but an old blogger and even older educator.;)

    I look forward to attending NCTE next year (Reading Specialist who teaches reading AND writing ~ equally ~ in her HS classes), and have enjoyed keeping up with the conference events via Twitter and blog posts. :)

    Happy Thanksgiving,
    Robin in Florida

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  2. Julie, your kindness was the first to greet me on Thursday. I was so honored and felt immediately welcomed into your family. It was the best conference ever because of these connections. I was surrounded by friends whom I had never met. This is powerful!

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  3. Love that it was that kind of time, Julie, & of course jealous that I couldn't be there. I'm enjoying all the talk, however. Happy Thanksgiving!

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  4. I haven't gone to NCTE for the past couple of years and really, really miss it. Can't wait until my kids are out of college and I can go again. The people really are my favorite part too!

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  5. Julie, it is so important to have faithful friends online and off. I am glad that we met and hope that you and your friend will consider joining the REFLECT WITH ME Writing Community that I started with my global galleries. You can see a sample of the galleries attached to the informative invitational blog that I sent out in September: http://beyondliteracylink.blogspot.com/2014/09/falling-into-place-as-season-turns.html. Have a Happy Thanksgiving!

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  6. Julie, it was a pleasure to meet you this weekend. Like I said in my presentation, it really felt like I was surrounded by old friends and not a room full of strangers. This was my first time attending NCTE, so I'm glad I was able to do so in such a supportive community of Slicers-Turned-Friends.

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  7. You are describing such a wonderful image of wrapping your arms around virtual friends who became real. WISH I WERE THERE!

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