ONE DAY in 2013, AFTER TWO MONTHS OF DISAPPOINTING THOUGHTS ABOUT EDUCATION, I HAPPENED TO BE WALKING THROUGH THE PARK NEAR ROGERS HIGH SCHOOL. A STUDENT NAMED ALYSSA CALLED OUT TO ME FROM THE OTHER SIDE OF THE FENCE. SHE AFFECTED ME.
ALYSSA
Her hand went up and reached
Toward my smile.
The crisscrossed steel fencing
Halted her progress and divided us
In two separate worlds:
Student and Teacher.
my teacher heart soared to see the wide smile and earnest eyes
That i did not know i missed.
Happy to see her.
This is why I teach.
And for one day, Alyssa
Made the teacher smile
To feel needed is the thing:
The human thing.
And so
Who was it that made this teacher want to
Scale the fence and
Destroy the barrier
Between students and teachers?
It was Alyssa.
CLR May 2013