I would like to argue
There really isn't anything
That hard
About the doing of a teachers
Job.
Oh, there are overwhelming
Too much to do moments
And exhausting moments
And early morning long day
Moments.
But there isn't really anything
That hard
About the doing of a teacher's work.
It's the BEING a teacher
That's hard.
For in being a teacher your
Heart splits open
With all the things
You cannot fix
And all the things
You cannot do
or cannot do enough of.
When your heart aches
For a family you barely know
And you long to comfort
A child
That has been through more pain
Than anyone should bear
Yet you know a hug won't fix
Or mend
Or take away any of it.
And the problem isn't yours to fix
But you feel so responsible
Somehow
Anyway.
And so you teach them
For a short time
While they're yours.
Math. Science. Reading. Writing.
Things that might help them.
And maybe they aren't ready to learn.
And you don't know why,
Can't pinpoint the problem ...
The problem you can't fix.
Maybe you try
A hundred things
And some work for a minute
Or even a lot of minutes.
Maybe you bandaid the hardships
At best you impact the heart
And future.
But there is so much you don't know.
And you KNOW you don't know.
And the behaviors come
And maybe they are just behaviors
Or maybe they are pleas for help
And the learning struggles come
And maybe they are just that
Or maybe they are flags of more
And always you don't know
Just exactly
The magic way
How to fix either thing
No matter the root cause
Even if you can find the root cause.
So you make the environment
Of your piece of their world
The best you can.
But you can't excuse them
From all the work they must do
And all the things
They should learn...
Because that wouldn't
Help them at all.
But pushing academics
Doesn't always feel right
And so you strive
For perfect balance.
And you can't shield them
From the harshness
Of the world
From the parts of theirs
That aren't yours to control.
And you can't fix
It all.
Even on a good day.
Can't teach it away.
And so your arms ache
To hold their tiny selves
And protect them
And your mind spins
Thing to find
The perfect strategy
To engage, to teach, to inspire.
To keep them going.
To make them see what you see.
Their strength.
Their resilience.
Their potential.
And you know
No matter what struggle
Or hardship
You won't stop showing them that.
Because maybe
Just maybe
You can set their course
On a little smoother path.
Maybe they'll remember
That you believe in them
And tried things with them.
And that they shouldn't ever give up
On themselves.
Oh anyone can
Do the work of the teacher.
It's not hard to stand
In the room and
Teach.
But not everyone can
BE a teacher.
Because sometimes
it is hard
On your heart.
And yet it drives you
And you would not choose
To walk away
Because you already chose them
Those kiddos
And you would choose them
Again every day.
Walking A Narrow Path 