A special gift

A former colleague contacted me because her son's soccer team had a game on Salt Spring yesterday and she wondered if we could get together.  I was thrilled because I hadn't seen her for a few years!   I was also thrilled because a former student, Clinton,  showed up - his son plays on the same team!  I had no idea.  It was fantastic to catch up with both of them, even though it was only for the duration of the soccer game because both were transporting players back to Vancouver Island.  I didn't see much of the game - too much to talk about!
At the end of the game, Clinton said that he had something in his car for me.  He gave me this beautiful blanket with the NITEP logo on it.  NITEP was the program I worked with for many years, and Clinton now has the position I had!  Very cool. 
I have so many wonderful memories of my years with NITEP and this gift is very special. Thanks to G for taking this photo by the huge cedar tree this morning.  The extra is a photo of Clinton and me that G took yesterday with Clinton's phone.   Clinton posted it on Facebook and I was able to download it. 
There was a tag on the blanket, and I really like the message on the it from Louie Gong (Nooksack)the CEO and founder of 8thGEN: 
"Thank you for supporting INSPIRED NATIVES not "Native Inspired".

Here's the story behind the logo taken from the NITEP website:
"The NITEP logo is based on a legend that comes from the Northwest Coast of BC and is found in one form or another in some Aboriginal cultures.
The legend tells of the time when the earth was in complete darkness. Raven flew through a hole in the sky and took the sun in his beak. He then brought it back through the hole to give light to the earth.
The logo shows Raven with sun in his beak superimposed over a circle that represents a hole in the sky. The NITEP Advisory Committee (renamed the First Nations Education Council in February 1995) thought this would be a fitting symbol because NITEP hopes to bring the light of education to Aboriginal children in a much more effective way than has happened in the past.
The logo was designed by Philip (Opie) Oppenheim, a Ntla’kapmx artist."