Monday, September 12, 2011

I Had Forgotten...

During the summer I always forget what it is like to be a teacher. This summer, I had forgotten...

...what it was like to hear "Mrs. Wedgeworth" 500 times in one day
...how tired I am by the time I lock my classroom door to go home
...what it is like to not only be a teacher - but a peacemaker, a boo-boo kisser, a tear-wiper, a referee, a janitor, a book keeper, a field trip organizer, a lesson planner, a decorator
...how to keep a to-list
...the feeling of being so tired that I don't want to walk or go to yoga but forcing myself to do it anyway
...not wanting to speak to anyone in the evening because I'm so tired of the sound of my own voice
...needing to call on God for patience pretty much every second of every day
...to say TGIF EVERY FRIDAY
...dreading the sound of the alarm clock at 6:00am
...what is was like to live for the weekends and to look forward to the fun weekend plans I have planned weeks in advance
...that I cry because I'm so frustrated
...the tools I need to manage over 100 students every day - their papers, books, desks, lockers, backpacks, schedules
...about getting phone calls and emails from parents
...the immense strength that it takes to parent over 100 children each day
...that I work a full day and still bring home in the evenings 2+ hours of papers to grade
...that I often spend my weekend grading essays and making lesson plans and not getting paid for it
...the joy I get seeing a child's eyes light up when the actually understand something
...the feeling of making a kid laugh
...what it feels like when you know you are imparting knowledge to children
...what it feels like to pray for the difficult ones
...how fun it is to talk to kids every day

If you know or love a teacher, please take the time today to thank them for the tremendous sacrifice that they make every single day. Don't say to them, "I wish I got a summer," because teachers DESERVE their summers more than you can ever know. I am so glad that God called me to be a teacher because even though it is one of the TOUGHEST jobs out there, it is by far one of the most REWARDING jobs there is!

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