An Unexpected Gift
Unexpected presents are the best kind of presents to receive in my eyes. You are going about your day, and suddenly you are given a gift. It can be something small, like a piece of chocolate from a coworker who knows your love of chocolate, or it can be something even better, like a compliment from an unruly student. The intangible gifts must be the best. Wednesday, I received one of the best unexpected gifts of my life.
I went shopping at "Teacher's Treasures," a free store for teachers who work in low income areas. They have a variety of classroom supplies that are donated by generous companies, and it can really help us poor teachers out, considering we are often expected to stock our own classroom with supplies on our measly salaries. (This is something few people think about if they do not know a teacher themselves.) As I turned a corner into a new aisle, I saw EE, a counselor at the facility I used to teach at. He is the outreach counselor who puts together community service projects for the young men incarcerated there. I asked what he was doing there, and he informed me that three of the young men were in the back working; they volunteer there every Wednesday. Much to my surprise, two of these young men I knew. They had been in the GED program, and had been working towards earning their GED when I left that position. EE asked if I would like to talk to them. OF COURSE!
MD came out first, and he didn't recognize me right away. Then he yelled my name and came trotting over. We chit-chatted for a while, and then JM came out as well. They both recently took their GED test, and they were talking about how worried they were about their scores, even though both scored high on the practice test. They started asking me questions about how to retake the test if they failed, and if I thought they had a good chance of passing with the practice scores they had. It was like I had never left that place. It was nice. It was comforting.
So where is this amazing gift I am speaking of? They are both going to college. That's right. They are both signed up for college classes already for next semester!!! One wants to work with computers, and the other wants to be a special education teacher! Can you believe it? Two young men that I helped are going to college. They are going to succeed! They are going to escape the violent, crime-filled lives they were living and head in the opposite direction. Did I cause this change in them? Certainly not. But I did help it along. I am confident in that. Two young men that I helped are improving their lives, and that my friend, is the best gift I could have ever asked for.
MD and JM are perfect examples of why I am a teacher, and why I insist on working with at-risk youth. I won't reach all of them. I won't even reach most. But as long as I keep reaching a few, I have done my job.
I thank God for allowing me this opportunity to see this powerful gift. What a small world. Who would have thought I would have been talking to my ex-students on a random Wednesday in the hood of Indianapolis?
I went shopping at "Teacher's Treasures," a free store for teachers who work in low income areas. They have a variety of classroom supplies that are donated by generous companies, and it can really help us poor teachers out, considering we are often expected to stock our own classroom with supplies on our measly salaries. (This is something few people think about if they do not know a teacher themselves.) As I turned a corner into a new aisle, I saw EE, a counselor at the facility I used to teach at. He is the outreach counselor who puts together community service projects for the young men incarcerated there. I asked what he was doing there, and he informed me that three of the young men were in the back working; they volunteer there every Wednesday. Much to my surprise, two of these young men I knew. They had been in the GED program, and had been working towards earning their GED when I left that position. EE asked if I would like to talk to them. OF COURSE!
MD came out first, and he didn't recognize me right away. Then he yelled my name and came trotting over. We chit-chatted for a while, and then JM came out as well. They both recently took their GED test, and they were talking about how worried they were about their scores, even though both scored high on the practice test. They started asking me questions about how to retake the test if they failed, and if I thought they had a good chance of passing with the practice scores they had. It was like I had never left that place. It was nice. It was comforting.
So where is this amazing gift I am speaking of? They are both going to college. That's right. They are both signed up for college classes already for next semester!!! One wants to work with computers, and the other wants to be a special education teacher! Can you believe it? Two young men that I helped are going to college. They are going to succeed! They are going to escape the violent, crime-filled lives they were living and head in the opposite direction. Did I cause this change in them? Certainly not. But I did help it along. I am confident in that. Two young men that I helped are improving their lives, and that my friend, is the best gift I could have ever asked for.
MD and JM are perfect examples of why I am a teacher, and why I insist on working with at-risk youth. I won't reach all of them. I won't even reach most. But as long as I keep reaching a few, I have done my job.
I thank God for allowing me this opportunity to see this powerful gift. What a small world. Who would have thought I would have been talking to my ex-students on a random Wednesday in the hood of Indianapolis?
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