Parents, do your kids know how much we care about them?
... and more importantly, do you know?
Soemtimes, people think that the typical teacher wakes up (often late), comes into the school with a mug of coffee, sits at the teachers desk, passes out worksheets, and reads the newspaper and drinks his coffee. Now, I'll admit to being guilty of the coffee thing from time to time, but people don't understand the emotional investment that comes with this responsibility. Sometimes it really hurts to know how bad some of your students are hurting, and sometimes it hurts even worse to not tell them that you know.
Sometimes, you know a student is heading for disaster, and despite your warnings, they decide to head toward it anyway. Sometimes it hurts to know that they need to "learn the hard way", and sometimes you need to try to stand in your way.
Sometimes, you wonder if the parents know as much as you do.
Sometimes I imagine, just for a second, that the weight of 100 people rests on my shoulders. Each one is bringing baggage. Sometimes they're duffel bags, and sometimes they're steamer trunks. Sometimes, whether I like it or not, that baggage spills out, and I get to see it all. Other times it's padlocked, but I can imagine that inside there's something dying to get out.
Every time one of these people picks up another bag, I can feel it. Sometimes it's painful, but at other times you realize that its their burden to carry.
Sometimes I wish that I could help sort out and pick up their problems, but I know that it's not my role, and I know I'm not very good at it.
Sometimes it makes me sad to realize that I focus so much on their baggage that I can't seem to straighten up my own. Teachers are people too, after all, with their own weight and baggage.
So next time you see that school teacher walking into the school with his cup of coffee, looking tired and dejected, as if they've got no sleep and can carry on no further, ask yourself "with all of that weight on his shoulders, and all of those 'sometimes' that he gives to those kids, how does he manage to carry those schoolbags?"
Soemtimes, people think that the typical teacher wakes up (often late), comes into the school with a mug of coffee, sits at the teachers desk, passes out worksheets, and reads the newspaper and drinks his coffee. Now, I'll admit to being guilty of the coffee thing from time to time, but people don't understand the emotional investment that comes with this responsibility. Sometimes it really hurts to know how bad some of your students are hurting, and sometimes it hurts even worse to not tell them that you know.
Sometimes, you know a student is heading for disaster, and despite your warnings, they decide to head toward it anyway. Sometimes it hurts to know that they need to "learn the hard way", and sometimes you need to try to stand in your way.
Sometimes, you wonder if the parents know as much as you do.
Sometimes I imagine, just for a second, that the weight of 100 people rests on my shoulders. Each one is bringing baggage. Sometimes they're duffel bags, and sometimes they're steamer trunks. Sometimes, whether I like it or not, that baggage spills out, and I get to see it all. Other times it's padlocked, but I can imagine that inside there's something dying to get out.
Every time one of these people picks up another bag, I can feel it. Sometimes it's painful, but at other times you realize that its their burden to carry.
Sometimes I wish that I could help sort out and pick up their problems, but I know that it's not my role, and I know I'm not very good at it.
Sometimes it makes me sad to realize that I focus so much on their baggage that I can't seem to straighten up my own. Teachers are people too, after all, with their own weight and baggage.
So next time you see that school teacher walking into the school with his cup of coffee, looking tired and dejected, as if they've got no sleep and can carry on no further, ask yourself "with all of that weight on his shoulders, and all of those 'sometimes' that he gives to those kids, how does he manage to carry those schoolbags?"