Habemus Papam

It's not everyday you get to share in the moment of the election of a new Pope with your students. But a little after 2:00 today, our principal came on the PA to announce that there was billowing white smoke coming from the Sistine Chapel and to pray for whoever had been chosen.

My prep period is the last hour of the day so I spent the entire time glued to NBC News's live feed. If the election of the last few Popes was any indication, it was likely we wouldn't see the new Pontiff for another hour. Sure enough, when 3:00 came and it was time to get my homeroom back for the last 15 minutes of the day, that's when things really started to set in motion. The new Pope was announced after the 3:10 bell for prayer, at which time students usually get their backpacks and coats as to be ready to leave at the 3:15 bell. Today, no one left the classroom after the 3:10 bell because they didn't want to miss anything. And we all stayed in the classroom and shared in this historic moment to see Pope Francis I, the first Pope from South America.

I told them they could leave to get their things, but they all stayed to share in this historic moment