Selfish vs. Selfless

Today was completely and utterly a Monday with a capital "M."

It rained today. Most of the time I think "ah, we need the rain because it's been so hot and and things will finally cool off." And plus I absolutely love the scent of rain. It's such a wonderful mixture of clean and refreshness. But today, the teacher inside of me said "crap, it's raining. What the heck am I going to do with my 4th graders?" They didn't get the chance to release their energy from sitting in a desk for the majority of the day so they were stuck with me in the classroom playing board games during recess. It was fun, but I felt completely out of control. It was hard to bring back all of the kids to get them ready for 4th period. P.S. I taught solely today during 4th period and felt like a complete idiot. They were my GT kids (Gifted and Talented) which means they love correcting the teacher.

It's quite an art form, teaching that is. I feel like many people don't fully grasp what it means to be a teacher, especially in the early grades (K-4th). Some people have the notion that we are babysitters, making sure that they color in between the lines and cut out shapes for them for math. But you people out there that are reading this and are believers of the previous statement are clearly mistaken.

Education is one of the most selfless professions to pursue. You climb out of your bubble of your own selfish needs and put a class full of bright eyed students in front. You are constantly working toward success for someone else. You bend over backwards trying to explain knowledge to someone who doesn't understand the way you understand. Believe me, I can't even begin to tell you how many different ways I have learned to teach a simple task like multiplication.

You learn to look past your own selfishness in so many ways. You stay after school to help that kid who doesn't understand their homework. You are a ear to listen to for a kid who is crying because they were chosen last during kickball at recess. You are the answer to all questions, regardless if you are 100% confident behind your answer or not. You are a role model for students who come from a rocky family life. You build a relationship of trust and love for each student, regardless if they are the brightest kid in your class or the one who is in the back row not paying attention at all.

But with all this venting, I couldn't see myself doing anything else. I know that my heart is in the right place. Now it is just a matter of finding the location of where I will take my dream.