I have two speeds: on and off. Teaching requires the switch to be on: body, mind and soul. What other job could engage me on so many levels, so fully? I never feel tired while I'm teaching, but when the bell rings at 3:19, my legs melt out from under me. The exhaustion is heavy, physical. It feels like one of those lead aprons used during dental x-rays.
So when I get home, I take a delicious, drool-on-my-pillow two-hour nap. To sleep when I've earned it, when I've emptied my stores completely, when I've given everything I had to give--this is the sleep of the just, an overlooked perk of teaching.
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Today's writing prompt asks what I love most about teaching, and it is that superlative that stumps me. I love the constant problem-solving, the challenge of hiding pills in applesauce, teaching kids stuff they never dreamed they'd want to learn. I love ordering books and reading books and sharing books and ordering more books. On any given day I could answer the "love most" question differently. Today I loved most my after-school nap.
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Day 4: Respond: What do you love the most about teaching?
So when I get home, I take a delicious, drool-on-my-pillow two-hour nap. To sleep when I've earned it, when I've emptied my stores completely, when I've given everything I had to give--this is the sleep of the just, an overlooked perk of teaching.
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Today's writing prompt asks what I love most about teaching, and it is that superlative that stumps me. I love the constant problem-solving, the challenge of hiding pills in applesauce, teaching kids stuff they never dreamed they'd want to learn. I love ordering books and reading books and sharing books and ordering more books. On any given day I could answer the "love most" question differently. Today I loved most my after-school nap.
Oh. I also love my Amazon Prime account.This was today's box.
Day 4: Respond: What do you love the most about teaching?
Reflection: I shouldn't have read others' responses to today's prompt before writing my own. I read Melissa Mae's charming entry, and I had a case of "can't touch that" paralysis. It is good to be reminded of how a model text (in this case, Melissa's essay) can sometimes drain rather than spark the desire to write. I had to push past feelings of "What can I possibly add?" I'm pretty sure no one else would say the after-school nap is the best part of teaching, so I chose it for its novelty. The last paragraph began as my first paragraph. I moved it to the end and struggled with a transition, so I copped out with the line break.
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