Sometime ago there was a teacher who celebrated her 80th birthday. It proved to be a marvelous occasion, highlighted by the presence of a great number of her former students.
It seemed that she taught school in one of the worst sections of Baltimore. Before she came to that school to teach there had been repeated instances of juvenile crime and delinquency. When she began her work there came a change.
The change in time became noticeable with so many of her students turning out to be good citizens, men and women of good character. Some became doctors, others lawyers, educators, ministers, honorable craftsmen, and skilled technicians.
It was no accident, therefore, that on important anniversaries like her 80th birthday she was remembered with gratitude and love from a great number of her students.
A newspaper got wind of this celebration and sent a reporter to interview her. He asked, among other things, what was her secret that made her teaching so rewarding?
She said: “Oh, I don’t know. When I look at the young teachers in our schools today, so well-equipped with training and learning, I realize that I was ill-prepared to teach. I had nothing to give but love.”
Thanks to Don McKenzie
What do you think in concrete terms this 80-year old teacher meant when she said: “I had nothing to give but love”?
What does a teacher need to do or to say in order to give love?
What examples of this come to your mind with teachers that you have had or your children have had?
I think you will find – THE GATHERING – a great Summertime read….
