Teaching can be very diffcult sometime.  Imagine that you are sailing for days and nights in a small sailiboat and there is no sun and no stars.  Only heavy clouds.  Grey.  Hopeless.  This is how we felt every morning in our small Math Fundamental class that was meeting in the  basement classroom without windows in Dilligham Center three times a week; Monday, Wednesday, and Friday at 8:00 in the morning.  There were 8 of us. Seven students and a teacher.  No one really wanted to be there.  There was no purpose, there was no meaning and we did not perceive any light.   It was late Fall and the days started getting shorter.  Half a semester passed.  Then one morning, when I could not stand the isolation and despair any longer I asked one of the students to sit on a chair and held her hands.  I looked into her eyes and opened my heart.  I shared how lonely I felt.  How difficult it is for me to come to this class and how difficult my night was.  Then it was her turn.  She looked into my eyes and shared how difficult it was to wake up in the morning.  How someone had activated the alarm at 2:00 and everyone was evacuated from the East Towers and only an hour later was allowed to return. The mutual sharing took only 20 minutes and when it ended something changed in the class.  There was an air of optimism.  A feeling of new life.  A few days later I decided to give all the students in the class a version the placement test again.  The test that they had failed when they first came to the college.  The only change was that I allowed them to use a calculator.  They all passed the test!  I was so happy and they were so happy.  It felt that now we can devote more time to explore deeper questions than just technical ways to solve math problems.  A few days after they passed the test I had to go to a conference in Oregon.  I also learned that one of the students is going to have her Birthday when I return.  What an opportunity to celebrate.  I decided in my heart to buy donuts when I come back from Oregon and bring them to class on Monday and have a surprize party to celebrate that all passed the test and have a birthday party at the same time.  When I returned from Oregon on Sunday night, I was very tired and forgot my decision.  The next morning I went for a walk with my dog Dubie on Warren Rd.  It was very cold.  From the distance I saw something white on the road.  Snow?  But it was not snowing.  Coming closer I saw a box of fresh donuts.  They probably fell from a delivary truck to one of the local motels.  I took the donuts and brought it home and my small family enjoyed the feast with warm tea.  Only then I remembered my decision.   There were enough donuts for the whole class and we had our party.  Only at the end of the term I told the students the story.