I never intended to become a teacher.
When I went to The University of Texas all those many years ago, I intended to go to law school and make a great living from it. My spiritual journey really heated up and by my senior year, I was more interested in becoming a missionary than in going to law school. My undergraduate degree, Plan II, was a liberal arts honors program…intended as the underpinnings of a graduate degree.
My dad was alarmed. “If you get a degree, I want you have something you can DO when you are finished.” “Okay,” I said. “I’ll get my teaching certificate.” As I began taking education courses, I found myself drawn to the art and science of teaching others. It was then that my mind began to recall the beautiful ideas about teaching that my mother – a veteran 27-year teacher – had impressed upon me.
She talked about why she collected the best classic books to read to her young students, whose addresses were from one of the poorest barrios in the San Antonio, Texas area.
She told me that she would visit the family of each of her students…all 35 or so of them. Families were welcoming and gracious as a teacher was very highly revered in that community.
Years later, when I was older I visited her room and was in awe of her closets filled with neatly organized puppets, sentence and phonics strips, beautiful storybooks and gorgeous manipulatives.
She told me, “I try to give my students a first-class experience with learning, hearing, creating and exploring. It can light a fire in the heart.” Her example lit a fire in my heart. I became a teacher with a passion for sparking curiosity and inspiring to create beauty. I never regretted it. Thanks mom!