Lori E, You Asked For It!

TEACHERS IN MY LIFE


I have had my knuckles rapped with rulers, I have been paddled for coming in from recess too early and had to clean some one else's writing off the wall.

I have been talked to, stood in the corner, stood on tip toes with my nose on a chalk line and stood in front of the class with gum on my nose.

I have been taunted, humiliated, punished, challenged and criticized, all by teachers. I guess I just looked guilty.

I learned everyone does not like tarantulas and had my pet, Harry, killed by a teacher. I learned that even though children are not allowed to pick their nose, teachers can. I learned that when a teacher spits in her hand and wipes it on the wall behind her back, we can still see.

I learned there are good and bad teachers, happy and sad teachers and some that are just there for a paycheck.

If I had to choose a teacher, I would choose my Dad, who is not a certified teacher but a lover of learning. He did not finish school and was the most self-educated man I know. I remember, even in high school, trying to bring a subject to the dinner table Dad knew nothing about, never found it.

Dad was a Will Rogers, Edgar Cayce, Euell Gibbons fan. He knew there was going to be a "Silent Spring" before Rachael Carson did. His favorite poem was Hiawatha. He loved music. He knew every plant, tree and rock. If we did not know an answer, he said look it up. He experienced the Dust Bowl, the Great Depression, and World War II. He could cut our hair just by looking at a picture in a magazine. The majority of his life was spent on road construction and we traveled. Life was a continual learning experience.

Dad brought his experiences to life with his stories. Each story had a lesson. He taught us love of the land, to live with it, not just on it. He encouraged us to learn. He always said the only stupid question is the one you do not ask. He said you can loose everything you own but they can't take your education.

The sad irony of this is, his knowledge is what he lost, slowly to Alzheimer's. And the man we knew as Daddy, left us. He left us with a wonderful legacy, his dreams, his adventures and his love of learning reside in all of us.

We love you, Daddy.

Writer's Challenge #3 from Family Trees May Contain Nuts.