Letter To My Seniors of 2002 and a Poem: "You Are to Become—a Teacher"
Reflections have brought more than a letter and a poem...
Hello all and sundry,
Well, it’s great to see you today! Shall we get something good to drink and have a snack or two? Let’s have a sit and take a trip back to our school days.
Do you remember your teachers? I sure do! Every single one, from kindergarten to my senior year, impacted me in some way and I’ll never forget them. They inspired me so much so that I got a degree in education.
Now, my dream wasn’t TO teach, but to be a poet, a writer. Still, teaching was an integral part of my life; an experience I will always remember. It was full of ALL the emotions, and connections with souls, more than one could imagine. It was everything from happiness to horror and every kind of feeling in-between. Until you have stood in front of desks filled with 25, sometimes as many as 40, pairs of eyes and very individual beings for 7 class periods a day , 5 days a week, well, you’ll never know how special or heartbreaking or grueling or exhilarating that experience IS. I was in front of a class for a short 16 years. For the majority of that time, it was the absolute BEST!
Other times, it sucked the life right out of me. For the horrors—I have attended my student’s funerals after accidents or suicide; attended their parent’s funerals after accidents, cancer, or war; had students jailed, deported, or homeless; and one student who, while taking my creative writing and English classes, in desperate cry and need for help, wrote poems so dark and hopeless, yet after multiple parent and admin meetings proved fruitless, in getting him help, his parents and others deemed it a “stage”, one day poured gasoline over himself and set himself on fire. He survived. He survived to live a whole different struggle through life. These are just some of the hardest moments for a teacher, for my students. You could add hunger, abuse, and being very young parents, or bullying, assaults, drug addiction, or crime to the descriptions. It is all there, what every adult will face, yet to be a part of a time during youth—it shouldn’t be their experience. It’s beyond rough, and it’s all more than heart wrenching.
The repetitive nature of life’s harshest experiences will break you, if you care about and love your students. It’s the half of teaching that contributes to career burnout. Really, it’s less than burnout and more akin to soul crushing. I experienced that and had to step away. I’ve not considered not going back at some point, but I couldn’t do it for 43 years like my husband did. I think that being an empath makes being a teacher so much more than standing in front of a room of kids sharing your love of subject matter. Being an empath and caring about your kids is everything BUT a job. The important thing to note is that the hard parts are half of the experience, the other half is coming…
The times to celebrate, thank God, were there to keep us all going, pressing hard for the best of things, and a hopeful future. Students who never dreamed to live to graduate, did; who were terrified to participate in a club or sport, yet discovered fulfillment and success; who had no plans for college, still applying and went; those who made friendships and formed bonds, lifelong connections; who never believed they could get to the university of their dreams, but DID; and who never imagined the lives they would lead beyond that classroom door, though now, they send life updates in awe of their paths. I have messages, letters, and cards filled with their life’s achievements: degrees, careers, families, travels, and living out their joys. Whether they are a cashier, a mechanic, a journalist, an EMT, a musician, a lawyer, an accountant, a barber, a minister, a chef, a homemaker, a pro athlete, a banker, a farmer, an author, a coach, a business owner, a baker, a waiter, an influencer, a teacher, a White House correspondent, or the hundreds of other spaces where they have met their societal places, they have found their way. There is not much more rewarding that that, except the icing on life’s cake: their inner happiness. I am so proud of every student who walked into our classroom. This half makes our living through the other half—survivable.
For all that teaching was, it filled my heart and my life with spectacular people and moments. I am forever grateful to have had it as a part of my life’s experience. This leads me to the post for today: A Letter To My Seniors of 2002 and a Poem: You Are to Become—a Teacher.
The following is the letter and poem I gave my Senior class of 2002. Let that take you back—2002. Their year began with 9/11—full of loss, 7 Gold Star families that year at our high school, and fear and uncertainty, yet it ended with graduation and hope for their futures. One of those student’s futures was becoming a teacher and in his FIRST year of teaching, being awarded, the school district’s highest honor—Teacher of the Year! When connecting with him in celebration, he reminded me of this letter and poem. My tears rolled as he let me know that he has carried it in his wallet, AND shares it with every new class he stands before: hundreds of pairs of eyes and individual, precious beings.
~RIPPLES~ are the reward.
From the last poem I posted, a little going back to that in relation to this~
…But, since I have limitations,
Set by those I do not know,
And some by those I do.
I will teach—how to be anything to my students.
I will NOT set their limitations.
I will show them how to exceed them.
Only then, can "I" be anything.
W. Gray, “If I Could Be Anything” ~1993
On to it….
Letter To My Seniors of 2002 and a Poem: “You Are to Become—a Teacher”
To My Seniors 2002,
I've been told that the greatest reward for a teacher is to see the results of how they've impacted the lives of their students. Yes, I believe, this is a great reward, but, far above that, I've found, the reward that far surpasses—is the impact those students have had on my life. I have been touched by hundreds of students in the few years I've been teaching, and each one has a place in my heart. They are my kids, my babies. The following poem is dedicated to all of them, and this year, especially, to all of YOU, the Seniors of 2002. My thanks, my gratitude, to you for blessing my life, for giving me the experience teachers live for.
You Are to Become—a Teacher
My life is full because of you. I wake each day, with all of you on my mind. I drive to school in anticipation of the day. I walk into Our classroom, gaze upon the empty desks. I stand in the door and see the place you will enter. There are times I stop, and for a moment, take it all in..... You will be filling those seats soon, and each of you will bring a piece, of yourself, to share, with each other, with me. I may see smiles, I may see tears, I may see so much in your eyes— the excitement of a game won, a test passed, a scholarship earned, an achievement made. Without speaking, I will understand what's on your mind— a heart, broken by your first love, or your fifth. A body, exhausted, because you worked until 2 a.m. A mind, troubled by your life outside of school, and I will know— that today, you may not want to hear my lesson on Chaucer, You may not want to write an essay on Othello, or answer questions about poetic meter. And, because I understand, I will do my best to ease the load, for you are already working on the lesson of Life. I hear your voices... sharing something with a friend, asking for help on an assignment, singing the school song, venting your frustrations, excitement of the upcoming prom. I hear in your voice— laughter, sighs, sorrow, trust, love. AND— my heart expands, with each of these moments. These are times I sit back and just— look around the room at all of you; I am filled with emotion. I see you all as so much more than my students— you are each unique, your own special talents, your own dreams, your own gifts to share. And.... I am overwhelmed by the presence of you; the gratitude I feel, knowing each of you showed up for our class today, and... I wonder, sometimes worry, about those of you not in attendance. Could you possibly understand the impact you have had on the life of this teacher??? Someday, you will, because each of you, you are to become— a teacher. You may not stand in the door of a classroom, awaiting your students, but you all will stand in front of others in your life: offering advice, knowledge, understanding, compassion, and love. Teaching lessons you have learned. You've already begun! You have taught me. I have learned as much from you, as you have from me, maybe more. And, My wish for you, as you enter this new phase in your life— Be Happy. Show the world: Friendship, Compassion, Honor, Trust, Acceptance, Faith, Hope, and, above all, Love. We are here to bless each other with these gifts. Share yourself— And success, will be yours.
As you walk across the stage and graduate into adulthood, your lives open before you. Remember the moments that got you here, and see the experiences you've had, thus far, as a base on which to build your life, your future. Each of you has a road to travel, a destination, a means to achieve all that you dream—you have acquired an education, your vehicle, and it will take you anywhere! There will be lessons learned, sometimes more than once and each of you will find that life is the biggest school you'll ever attend.
Go.......and TEACH.
The rewards are phenomenal!
Many blessings to you and best of luck!
Ms. Hertz
My hope is that my journey, the one now focused on being poet and writer, will have even one drop of the reward that my journey as teacher has had and continues to have.
My dearest thanks to my kindergarten teacher and all of the teachers in my life’s education for being such incredible inspirations to me and contributors to what my life is today.
In a time when leaders of our states and country are dismantling public school education and bashing our institutions of higher learning, this message is more important now than ever! An education and our teachers are most influential pieces in the puzzle of our lives—helping us, and future generations, become ANYTHING!
We cannot stand for the destruction of our schools and the full opportunities for our youth. We’ve got to do something. We cannot let our public-school education and our need for higher level learning to be dismantled and destroyed.
Our public schools educate every one, everyone. To change the rules and to make public schools either weak or non-existent so that private or tuition based charter schools can thrive, for those who can afford it, is beyond wrong. It’s a travesty. We can not stand for it. Do what you can to support your public schools.
Lend your support for education, wherever you are. In these United States of America, insist on the support of OUR Nation’s pubic school system. Give in any way you can to the students, the teachers and the staff. That’s your vote, that’s your volunteering, that’s your involvement as a parent, that’s your getting on a school board, that’s your being involved in community……attending high school, elementary, whatever events. Do whatever you can to support OUR public school system.
We are better when we TEACH.
Teach each other. Teach our kids. Leave a history that can be taught so that future generations can learn from it. The current state of our country is the prime example of why an education, why knowing our history, why teaching our children, why connecting with others, why being compassionate, why being someone who teaches with love—IS the most important thing. Because, when we don’t have that or when it has failed, this moment we are in HAPPENS.
Well, a letter and poem to my students, an impassioned feeling for education and why we need it, and I don’t often stand on a political, “political”, soap box, but our education has been turned into something political and so I’ll speak. I pray that someone listens.
Thank y’all for being here!
To all of my students, my former students, wherever you are—many of you, I know exactly where you are because we still keep in touch—SO PROUD OF YOU! Y’all just don’t know. I see you making a difference in our world. WHAT—a—reward!
Thank y’all. Love y’all.
Many blessings and MUCH LOVE,
~Wendy 💜
I had many tears fill my eyes as I read this - heart wrenching, unbelievable, inspiring, grateful and yet you wrapped it all into a flow of beautiful words and hope - thank you, Wendy. For teaching, for supporting all of us in this next chapter, for sharing your love of words and putting them together so they warm our hearts. 🤍
I am so glad I took a moment to read this, Wendy! Such a precious piece. I have started the New Year with new things bubbling up in my life, and I am balancing how to give due space to all this beauty. It feels so good to find you, my friend, in these words.