I wouldn't have been able to tell the truth either -- if I could even figure out what it was. Undoubtably, I would have ended up saying something utterly untrue and cliche like "I care about my family."
I'm surprised P. did that -- or maybe not. He was so very strange, at times.
And not only kicking yourself, but wondering why you'd stayed there when all you got was grief for it, and yet knowing you'd act the same way if the situation happened again?
Did you ever feel like P. was hell-bent on testing you in the fire? Or was he like that with everyone?I'd like to think that's what he was trying. Certainly there were other moments that suggested the same thing, in and outside of class. He did zero in on most students' strengths and weaknesses and had an uncanny ability to know who to choose when it came time to argue a point or respond to another student's statement, but he clearly had his favorites. A lot of students hovered around him -- mostly girls, since he was 30ish and hip and wickedly sarcastic and very good-looking in a George Clooney kind of way -- and he was the fantastic sort of teacher who wasn't afraid to "get personal" with his classes, made up nicknames for people and shared his own opinions and decorated his classroom and so forth, but he and I and a small group of guys who worked on the
( ... )
I'd have loved a teacher like P. I came across one a lot like that in what equivalates my late high-school -> early college years - and my "mentor" from bording school was just like that. And this year I finally found a professor at the University who is just like that as well. It's been the best four months of higher education because of it
( ... )
Which we would like to think means they were impressed but unwilling to admit it. It sounds beautiful.
my "mentor" from bording school was just like that. And this year I finally found a professor at the University who is just like that as well.
I'll bet yours are even better than P. in one way -- being gently kind and genuine. P.'s biggest drawback, and a few people reading this would back me up, is that he never came right out and solemnly tried to help you, it was mostly angle and teasing and borderline humiliation, at least in group settings. Slippery. Difficult to have a serious conversation with.
I can envy you P's dedication to testing you to the highest of your abilities. It's rough, but it's good.You've reminded me of another instance: P. was best friends with the department chair, A., whom I had senior year for AP (university-prep) English. I didn't get along with A. nearly as well -- he was off-putting and we had different tastes in literature -- and they must have talked about it and decided I was afraid of him,
( ... )
It sounds beautiful, but I honestly don't know if it was *S* Can't have been completely horrible or I'm sure someone would have commented! As you say, I'd like to think that.
That newspaper idea says a lot about how P. did things.
All of your stories about P. have reminded me of my favorite English teacher. We still keep in touch, and in fact, I visit her every summer to have tea. Our friendship didn’t start out so cordially though.
T sounds hilarious in class and supportive in person. I wonder about the definition of mentor. Not to pick on you, but to ask what it takes to call someone one. I mean, I had a few teachers in high school (P. among the top three spots) and fewer in college who meant something to me beyond the classroom, but I never really considered them "mentors" -- that's always seemed like an extra-special term for someone who takes you under his/her wing, guides you, advises you, talks with you, teaches you, helps you, who leaves an indelible mark on your life, who (if you're old enough) has you over to his/her house and introduces the spouse, etc. etc. Who becomes something far beyond "teacher" but never quite "friend." Maybe I'm idealizing again.
No no, indeed you've summed up "mentor" quite perfectly, and in fact, your definition reconfirmed my word choice. I visit my high school at the end of each semester to see T, go to her house over the summer (her husband and her dogs are wonderful), she tells me about her delinquient children--both a few years older than I. And all through that difficult period of trying to decide what I wanted to do with my life and being told by my parents that there are no such things as options, she listened and gave invaluable advice. What I love about talking with her is that I knew even when I was 16, she was listening to me as if I were a real person--not treating me like a child. And what I loved about her advice was that it was true and not idealized. As I grappled with living my own life and the life my parents wanted, she said "nothing comes without a price." I think if I had never met her, I might at this moment be an engineer or computer science major all the while indifferent to what I was doing.
It does sound exactly like a mentor (how wonderful!).
My question, then, is either what is the 'minimum requirement' for someone to be called a mentor, or what's the term for someone who's more than a teacher and less than a mentor?
Okay, true, but that was a few years after the interview, and technically he caused the other guy's car to crash into the bushes. At least that's what the police report said.
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I'm surprised P. did that -- or maybe not. He was so very strange, at times.
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Did you ever feel like P. was hell-bent on testing you in the fire? Or was he like that with everyone?I'd like to think that's what he was trying. Certainly there were other moments that suggested the same thing, in and outside of class. He did zero in on most students' strengths and weaknesses and had an uncanny ability to know who to choose when it came time to argue a point or respond to another student's statement, but he clearly had his favorites. A lot of students hovered around him -- mostly girls, since he was 30ish and hip and wickedly sarcastic and very good-looking in a George Clooney kind of way -- and he was the fantastic sort of teacher who wasn't afraid to "get personal" with his classes, made up nicknames for people and shared his own opinions and decorated his classroom and so forth, but he and I and a small group of guys who worked on the ( ... )
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my "mentor" from bording school was just like that. And this year I finally found a professor at the University who is just like that as well.
I'll bet yours are even better than P. in one way -- being gently kind and genuine. P.'s biggest drawback, and a few people reading this would back me up, is that he never came right out and solemnly tried to help you, it was mostly angle and teasing and borderline humiliation, at least in group settings. Slippery. Difficult to have a serious conversation with.
I can envy you P's dedication to testing you to the highest of your abilities. It's rough, but it's good.You've reminded me of another instance: P. was best friends with the department chair, A., whom I had senior year for AP (university-prep) English. I didn't get along with A. nearly as well -- he was off-putting and we had different tastes in literature -- and they must have talked about it and decided I was afraid of him, ( ... )
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As you say, I'd like to think that.
That newspaper idea says a lot about how P. did things.
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http://pynelyf.livejournal.com/25996.html
My posts tend get longwinded and overly serious though...perhaps I should practice concision as a exercise in my next few memories
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T sounds hilarious in class and supportive in person. I wonder about the definition of mentor. Not to pick on you, but to ask what it takes to call someone one. I mean, I had a few teachers in high school (P. among the top three spots) and fewer in college who meant something to me beyond the classroom, but I never really considered them "mentors" -- that's always seemed like an extra-special term for someone who takes you under his/her wing, guides you, advises you, talks with you, teaches you, helps you, who leaves an indelible mark on your life, who (if you're old enough) has you over to his/her house and introduces the spouse, etc. etc. Who becomes something far beyond "teacher" but never quite "friend." Maybe I'm idealizing again.
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My question, then, is either what is the 'minimum requirement' for someone to be called a mentor, or what's the term for someone who's more than a teacher and less than a mentor?
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