Earlier today, I was writing a long overdue note to a former teacher. Recently, I've run into two former students, Joe and Becky. Joe, as you may have read earlier, is among my top 5 students of all time, and Becky drove me crazy every day I had her. I prayed for her to be absent; she was HORRIBLE on 9 days out of 10. Several times, she'd - well, let's not go into all that, let's just move on. In spite of all that, she came up and hugged me and told me how she wished she was still in my class. (Perhaps I should try acting!!)
Seeing them both reminded me of Mr. Franklin. I grew up calling him "Dickie" because he was in my brother's class, and everyone called him that - his name is Richard. By the time I got into high school, Mr. Franklin was a teacher. He was also the yearbook sponsor, so my friend and I signed up to do yearbook with "Dickie." That decision changed who I am today in a powerful way - he made me editor, which forced me to deal with people and situations that I'd never have felt able to do. I doubt he gave it a moment's thought, but I see it as a pivotal moment in my life.
So today, after all these years, I'm sending Mr. Franklin a thank you note. I've intended to do it for many years, but just haven't. I hope I say what I want to express to him my gratitude. This is my 25th year to teach, and I hope there's someone out there that feels even a small portion of that towards me. It will make it all worthwhile.
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It seems that God is putting very specific people in you way (physically and mentally) to remind you of the joys of teaching. He's so good to rejuvinate our weary spirits just when we need it most!
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