Tonight I went to a Head Start parent night on Conscious Discipline. It was about how the brain responds to stress and how to help our children — and ourselves, maybe especially ourselves — navigate stress so kids can learn. I think it's also so life can be better.
Among other things, the presenter showed us this video about a young man on the wrong path, and the teach who literally saved his life.
I have a bias toward teachers. I was one. My husband is one. My mother-in-law was one. And I had so many who helped me navigate my education and my life.
But I also had my share of bad teachers, the ones who played favorites and arranged kids according to their math test scores (yes, that really happened; it was the '80s). The one who called the girls "Baby" and told them to get his coffee. The one who told great stories but never covered any actual material.
So I don't have some blind love of teachers, and I don't think all teachers are great and should be put on pedestals.
But this woman saw something, and she acted. And she saved a young man's life. That's powerful, and it deserves recognition.
So here's to those with the gift of teaching, the ones who have the natural talent and the ones who work day after day to develop it in the hopes of making a small difference. Because sometimes they get to make a bigger difference than they could have imagined.