Teacherhood

Teacherhood, it’s a lot like motherhood.

The other morning, I posted on Facebook how I ended up taking my neighbor kids to school because they missed their bus. I received some kind comments and messages about it, specifically my hashtag #EveryKidIsYourKid. While I appreciated the kind words, I’m not any different than most teachers. It’s crazy how once you become a teacher, every kid in that school truly becomes your kid. It’s like a light switch that gets flipped. You feel this need and responsibility to help all of them to be successful, to increase their well being, and just protect them at all times.

And not just when you are at school, actually more so outside of school than anything.  

The evening of the last day of school this past year, my first (half) year teaching, I cried. I cried a lot. And it was because of one student in particular that I had twice a day. He was very opinionated, outspoken, and pushed most people away because of those reasons. Yet he became one of my favorite people to be around, which is weird because some days he was hard to handle and he did challenge me, a lot, but he did mean well and just saw the world differently than most. And I cried because I just worried about him and how the world would treat him. And I still worry about him to this day. 

Several of my students and other students from school have ended up in my driveway to play basketball and I love it when they are there because I know they are okay. 

I was at one of our football games recently and saw one of my students who has that inherent ability to make me want to bang my head against the wall at times. Yet while I was watching him, I felt this protectiveness come over me and wanted to make sure the kids around him were being nice to him.

It was no different when I saw that our neighbors missed their bus.They aren't even my students but I still felt responsible for getting them school. And it’s a responsibility that’s not a burden, rather a privilege. I feel so lucky to be a part of these kiddos lives. And I assure you, I'm not the only teacher who feels this way. This is what a teacher is. 

And It was when I made that Facebook post that the light bulb came on…. Now I know how loved and cared for I’ve been by so many of my teachers over the years. There are so many teachers I’ve had that are a still part of my life. I can count on Mrs. Karen Hill, who I had in elementary school as a teacher twice, to check in on my, leave sweet words of encouragement on my Facebook posts, and give me a big hug every time I see her. So many of my teachers continue to be my biggest cheerleaders and it wasn’t until I became a teacher that I truly understood how much they cared for me. 

It’s like when you become a mom. You never understand how much you are loved by your mom until you become a mom. And it’s an amazing feeling.