Things That Make Me Glad I Teach

There were a lot of reminders today about why I'm glad I teach. Here's a list of 5 things:

1. Hugs

I have my own personal bubble that I don't like kids to enter most of the time, but there are times where student hugs are nice. A majority of the hugs I get are from former students. Most of the former male students I have usually make a big show of it, yelling, waving (flailing) arms and then squeezing all the air out of me. I still appreciate it, though.

2. Emails

Every now and then, I get emails and facebook or myspace messages from former students. Most are like one facebook request (I have a separate facebook just for students) I got today from an Old School student that went something like "Mrs. P!!! I MISS YOU! I LOVE COLLEGE!"

But this is one email I got today:

Hey Mrs. P i just finished watching Finding Forrester starring Sean Connery. It got me thinking about my writing and how you helped influence me. My creative juices started flowing after I got into the movie and the plot thiccened. I really could relate to the main character Jamal Wallace in the movie because he grew up in the Bronx surrounded by the hardships of life and growing up without his father. Another good movie that got to me is The Hurricane starring Denzel Washington. It's based on a true story about Middleweight boxer Rubin "Hurricane" Carter and his wrongful imprisonment for 20 years. I never tell people this but my favorite book is The Phantom Tollbooth written by Norton Juster. It's crazy because I dont remember how i got the book or how I began to read it. Once I got through the first chapter I was hooked lol. That book alone had a strong part in molding my imagination. Many important aspects of my life play a part in my writing. For instance, growing up without a father, me being a Crip because of me not having a fatherly figure, the death of my uncle when i was 8, losing my my cousin to the pen, all the drama and bull around me, and so on and so forth. I started with music to escape but when I combined that with my writing I really began to blocc out the madness around me. These were just some thoughts on my mind. Love to hear from you soon. Sincerely, [name removed] Lil Malcolm X He also emailed me again when he realized he wanted to tell me that he decided to reread Catcher in the Rye and see if he liked it more the second time. I told him that I brag a little about how brilliant he was, how great his writing was and how proud I am of him. He was supposed to go to school after graduating in June, but money issues got in the way. I know he'll get there one day and I know he'll love college. BTW, he signs all his emails with his name and 3. Stopping by Slowly, but surely, former students have been stopping by my room--in the morning, at lunch, and after school. Usually, they just stop in to say hi, but there have already been times where we've had deep conversations and laughed so hard we almost cried. It boggles my mind that they want to spend that much time with me because I'm always thinking, "Why aren't you out there, in the hallways, like everyone else?!". 4. "I miss your class" From a high school student, this is almost as great of a compliment as "You look nice today!". Most HS students are so busy being bored, they forget to enjoy class. It's always great to hear them admit that they miss a class, which leads to #5... 5. When they remember things It's great to hear them say they miss my class, but even better when they remember something we read. I love when students remember small things we read or wrote about and how it affected their life because I never expect it. What I hear while teaching is "Ugh, I hate this. This is so boring," and what I hear later is "Remember when we read that? Hilarious! Remember when we wrote that? I loved that assignment!". Who are you and what have you done with that other kid I taught? I hope to remember these things when I hit those rough days that happen throughout the school year. Those days are when you need reminders of why you do this the most.