I am going to die soon. Thank you for sharing your joy with me
Head teacher’s heartbreaking goodbye to primary pupils
AS a dedicated and inspirational primary school head, Sue East’s pupils had always been her life.
So as she lay dying in a hospice last month, she made sure to thank them for sharing their “joy and friendship” in a heartbreaking goodbye letter.
Sue was 59 when she passed away on December 19 and her touching note – which St Andrew’s Church School in Bath, Somerset, has now shared – was dated the same day.
The mother of three told her pupils: “I am so sorry I can’t be with you this Christmas. I want you all to know I am resting in a comfortable room with a lovely view and I feel very peaceful.
“But my illness has made me very tired and I believe I am going to die soon. So this is my way of saying goodbye to all you wonderful creatures. I have loved my time at St Andrew’s. It’s an amazing school and you are all amazing.
“I never thought I could find so much joy in my work. Thank you all for sharing your joy and friendship with me.
“It will soon be time for me to move on to new adventures. I have a picture in my mind of a little boat – a coracle – carrying me home to the land of angels.”
The message, which also quoted a poem called The Guardian Angel and CS Lewis novel The Voyage of the Dawn Treader, added: “Never forget there is fairy dust to be found in every situation, no matter how difficult.”