It took me a very long time to decide what I wanted to be when I grew up. When I was little, I wanted to follow in Hannah Montana’s footsteps and become a rockstar. As I got older, I wanted to be a nurse (just like my mom). Then in high school, after watching way too many crime documentaries, I decided I wanted to become a criminal justice major in hopes that one day I could work for the FBI. It wasn’t until my senior year that I realized that all I really wanted to do was teach.
I always had exceptional teachers, but only two ever stood out to me. The first was my sophomore year history teacher. It’s funny because at the beginning of the year I didn’t think I was going to like him. I had a fever of 102 on the first day and a splitting headache to accompany it. All I remember was him being really loud. He was yelling the syllabus at us and I was just sitting there like oh my god man shut up! But throughout the following weeks, I realized that he was just passionate about his job and subject. Even more than that though, he was passionate about his students. About halfway through the year, we were assigned a huge exam on about 5 chapters worth of information. The night before however, my mother and I were forced out of our home by my (at the time) step-father. We left in a hurry to go to my grandmother’s house, and in all of the commotion, I had forgotten to grab my textbook. So, I got to my grandmother’s house and started crying because I knew that I was going to fail my exam if I wasn’t able to study. I got to school 30 minutes early the next morning and sat outside of his classroom until he arrived. I intended on asking him if he would allow me to take the test on another day, something that I never did, however, I began crying halfway through the question. He brought me into the hallway and had me explain what happened and what I needed. Once I did, he began to cry and told me that I reminded him of his son. This was the first time I had ever seen a teacher care so much about a student. He allowed me to take the test another day and he sent me to get coffee. This small act of kindness was something that I had never experienced with a teacher before and it truly changed my outlook on teachers and school in general.
The other teacher was my sophomore year English teacher. English had always been my favorite subject, mostly because I loved reading and writing in that it provided an escape from reality. This teacher was beyond passionate about his subject. He would have us perform plays full out (and in costume). He had us write our own poetry, plays, short stories which we would display for the class. He took time out of his lunches and afternoons to help students who were struggling. His room was always a safe place. I remember going there at random points throughout the day just to say hi. This teacher was a beam of light in the dark school hallways. His attitude towards teaching and his passion for his students is the reason I thought of becoming a teacher.
Both of these people changed my life, not only in the way I think but the way I see the world and that is the impact I want to have on my future students. I want to be the teacher who inspires students to think differently. I want to be the teacher who supports students when they need it most. I want to be the teacher who advocates endlessly for their students because those are the teachers who changed my life, and I want to be the teacher who changes theirs.