361/365 – people to thank who have had an impact on me. Back in the day, my Accounting teacher told me that in life there are three definites: death, taxes and car accidents. That hit me. I didn’t know about any of them at age 17. I learned about taxes pretty quickly – take home vs gross pay – pretty ugly. Yes, I’ve had my fair share of fender benders – small accidents thankfully. I did not experience any immediate family loss until well into my 40s. Yes, so very rare and very fortunate but I did attend funerals prior to this. Sadly, as a teacher, they were of my students. I have been teaching high school since 1991 and have taught well into the thousands of young minds. They are perpetually 17 or 18 years old to me. Lives full of potentiality! A lot of them feel like extended family because I get to know them as young adults since I teach grade 11 and 12. With the advent of social media, I have gotten to keep in touch with them and get to see what they are getting up to in their lives and I vicariously take pride in their successes and when there are failures in their lives, I also feel that sense of loss. Thus to hear/find out that these young, amazing people have passed away well before their prime was something that I was not prepared for. The one that struck me the most was Chris. He was in my and the school’s (Burnett) first graduating class ever. Chris had it all. Height, model looks, girlfriend on his arm, athleticism, university acceptance, amazing family and a wonderful and humble personality. Always respectful to me and constantly smiling and just an all around nice guy. This is exactly who I wanted to have as a son if I ever had a son (which would happen a couple years later). The day that I heard that he was killed in a car accident shortly after graduation devastated me. This was the first death of a person I had known. It was a student. There should be distance. This should not affect me. I didn’t know him that well. He was just in my class. I tried making the excuses but it did affect me. He was like a “child” to me as are many of the students that I teach and end up bonding with. He was an amazing young man with his whole life in front of him. He has stuck in my mind. He has forever affected me. Yes, there have been other students. None as young as him yet none of them any less important but Chris was that special young man. Chris made me realize that in my career as teacher, the students that I work with will also affect me just as much as I affect them and all I wish upon their graduations is not only for their happiness but that they lead long and happy lives. Yes Chris, you are gone, but you are never forgotten! Thank you for coming into my life and showing me that teaching is more than just teaching – it’s about connections, memories and relationships.
Category: graduation
July 15 – school’s out forever
356/365 – people to thank who have had an impact on me. This gratitude post is for every former student who has stayed in touch with me/kept in contact with me. For those who are on my Facebook feed and will give an occasional comment or a like on some ridiculous life event that I have posted, I appreciate you. For those who spot me in a restaurant or pub and come up and shake hands/give me a hug, I am honoured. For those who are going about their life be it at an event or working in the community and I happen to be there unknowingly and you go out of your way to say hi, I am moved. For those of you who throw out a text and ask to connect over beers/movie/dinner, I feel privileged. For those of you who take it upon yourselves (years later) to send me a shout out telling me how I affected you positively, I am beyond words. I feel I have been very fortunate to have become a teacher but it’s all because of the amazing former students that I got to work with. The majority were from Burnett – 16 years’ worth!! I have only been at McNair for four years so the legacy is just being created as of yet but there are the rare few that fit into this category and I was only in Vancouver for two years at different schools and thus, made minimal connections. Although this gratitude post might be short in length, it’s huge in how I feel about the students I have worked with – just because you didn’t get a personal shout out during this past year doesn’t mean you didn’t impact me in some form as we all have different ways of connecting but thank you to all of you who have passed through my doors but more importantly to all of you that I still “connect” with.
June 20 – 12s
331/365 – people to thank who have had an impact on me. So here we are at the end of another school year. Sadly, they are going way too fast and becoming like blurs which means I’m aging real fast (only 6 years away from retiring full pension – yikes!!). The thing that keeps me going though is the grade 12s that I teach. I love having intelligent, insightful conversations for the most part and I also love the fact that they get my sense of humour and I absolutely love pushing the educational envelope and they love ripping it open to get at the content. I give props to my elementary comrades – I could never do that job. First of all, I don’t like being touched without my consent – thus, having all these young hands pulling and prodding me would drive me crazy and second and more importantly, my sarcasm would be wasted on them and of course they would go home crying and I’d be fired 😉 Now these grade 12s – they amaze me with their talent and knowledge and insight. I mean this year I taught a guy who was a wicked videographer, a guy who just said it like it was, the girl who became the second person ever to score 100% on the psych final paper, the girl who was the psyvivor winner who played it amazingly well, the braniac accounting student…the list goes on and they were all in grade 12. Each and every year, I am inspired and my love for teaching increases that much so. I am already looking forward to next year’s crop of grade 12s and what they will bring to my classes as I have taught several of them in junior grades. Yes, I have won a lottery in life to be able to wake up every day and go to work in a job that I absolutely love and a big part of that is the Grade 12s that I get to work with! Happy grad to this year’s crop, and happy lives to my former Grade 12s and I can’t wait to work with my future Grade 12s! I throw my proverbial grad cap in the air in your honour!
May 28 – grad date
308/365 – people to thank who have had an impact on me. It’s that time of year in the high schools – graduation for grade 12s and all that comes with that: final exams, valedictory ceremonies, dinner and dance, etc. Looking back at my own grade 12 year, it was a non-event as I wasn’t too concerned about the various functions as I wasn’t going to attend. I didn’t really have close bonds with any of my classmates. I decided to go to the valedictory (getting my diploma) as that was more for my parents although unlike today’s events held at grand ballrooms, ours was in the school gym!! LOL Yes, as I said — a non-event! I had resigned myself to the fact that I was not going to attend the actual grad (dinner and dance) as first of all I didn’t really have a crew and second of all, everyone had dates and limo rides and well, not being with the in crowd or any crowd, it was easier to just stay home. About two to three weeks away from the event, a co-worker from McD’s and fellow grade 12 named Monette asked me if I was going to go to grad. I said no. She said she wasn’t going to go but we should just go. I was dead set against it but then other people from McD’s suggested that we should go and it would be so much fun. Monette didn’t give up and I ended up going with her and her friends. Paid for the ticket and limo share. Last minute tuxedo rented – cringeworthy (white with black accents). Corsage bought for Monette. Off to the Hotel Vancouver – I think that’s where it was or maybe I’m getting very confused with the countless graduation dinners I’ve chaperoned as teacher. Did I have fun? Hell yes! I owe it all to Monette for convincing me to go. I even went to the after-party!! Two grad events in one night (second one not school sanctioned of course 😉 ) If not for Monette, I think I would have always regretted not having gone to grad dinner & dance. I was finally a part of the grad class and had shared memories. Do I want to see pictures of myself then – uhm no, seeing the one on my mom’s fridge still after all these years is enough! 🙂 Thanks Monette for the push I needed and thank you for being my grad date!
randysangha 