I Didn't Know
I didn't know that years of school and a college degree would be 
of little consolation when facing a room full of bright little eyes 
on the first day of school. I thought I was ready...
I didn't know that five minutes can seem like five hours when there 
is idle time and an eight hour school day far too short for a 
well-planned day of teaching.
I didn't know that teaching children was only a fraction of my job. 
No one tells you about the conferences and phone calls, faculty 
meetings and committees, paperwork and paperwork...
I didn't know that it took so long to cut out letters, draw and 
color pictures, laminate-all for those bulletin boards that were 
always "just there"...
I didn't know that I would become such a scavenger, and that teaching
 materials would feel like pure gold in my hands... 
I didn't know that an administration and co-workers that support 
and help you could make such a difference...
I didn't know that there would be children that I loved and cared 
for and stayed up late worrying about, who, one day, 
would simply not show up. 
And that I would never see them again...
I didn't know that I can't always dry little tears and mend 
broken hearts. I thought I could always make a difference...
I didn't know that the sound of children's laughter could drown 
out the sound of all the world's sadness...
I didn't know that children could feel so profoundly.
A broken heart knows no age.
I didn't know that a single "yes ma'am" from a disrespectful child 
or a note in my desk that says "You're the best!" could make me feel 
like I'm on top of a mountain and forget the valleys I forged to get there...
I never knew that after one year of teaching I would feel so much 
wiser, more tired, sadder and happier, all at once.
And that I would no longer call teaching my job, but my privilege.

~Author Unknown~

Graphics © by the artists and also purchased by Anne C. LaBoon.
Click on the links provided to visit them.
All contents and graphics located on this site should not be removed.
This site is NOT public domain.