every year, as a teacher, I would select a few students that I really enjoyed teaching and upon their graduation, I'd give them a card and a gift card to Barnes and Noble. I'd try to write something inspiring in the card and tell them to select a book that could change their lives forever. The kids that I selected were always what I would call "fringe kids" - the kids that marched to the beat of their own drummer, were free thinkers and free spirits, not bending to the "rules" of a high school but really doing their own thing. Kids who, like me when I was in high school, couldn't wait to get out and start their real lives.
I did the graduation cards 4 of my 5 years of teaching and never got a thank you, minus one kid. To protect his identity, we'll call him "Chase". This kid was an odd duck, but I took a liking to him immediately. He was an open drug user, but also helped to take care of his disabled younger brother. He grew nasty dreadlocks his senior year and only wore salvation army clothes. He sat on the very back row of AP US history for an entire year and spoke rarely, only to correct something and idiotic and ridiculous said by a fellow student. He wrote great essays and was a kid I just couldn't figure out. He was always reading and reading stuff high school kids didn't usually read: Freudian psychology, Capote, Mailer, Tolstoy - a wide variety of stuff. He was huge into the psychedelic history of America (thus explaining the mind altering drugs) and on days his pupils weren't too dilated and his speech too slurred, he was a joy to have in class. So one day I decided to give him my copy of "A clockwork orange." I thought this would be right up his alley. It was - he wrote me a note thanking me for the book.
As a senior, there were many times he'd find me on my consultation hour and want to talk about the plight of the world, or Tibet, and tell me his plans for the future. I was never sure why he liked me - I was too mainstream - but it was fun to talk to him.
About a year after graduation (I gave him a card) I got a single-spaced, typed, 3 page letter from him telling me thanks for the card and about his adventured post graduation. He and a few friends went all Chris McCandless "into the wild" and hitchhiked to Alaska and lived off the land for the summer. That was over 1 year ago and up until yesterday, I haven't thought about this kid or heard from him.
Checking my voice mail yesterday morning I received a very strange message from over the weekend. The person speaking was obviously inebriated (drugs? alcohol? both?) and was so jumbled and mumbly that I could hardly understand the message. I understood, "...gave me your phone number...", and "wanted to let you know you were a great teacher..." and "this is "chase"."
Anyway, I'm happy to know that a student still remembers me - even if he's stoned out of his mind. I'm also a little nervous that he'll track me down. I'm not nearly as cool and hip as I once was - and I'm not sure it's safe for him to drive.
I did the graduation cards 4 of my 5 years of teaching and never got a thank you, minus one kid. To protect his identity, we'll call him "Chase". This kid was an odd duck, but I took a liking to him immediately. He was an open drug user, but also helped to take care of his disabled younger brother. He grew nasty dreadlocks his senior year and only wore salvation army clothes. He sat on the very back row of AP US history for an entire year and spoke rarely, only to correct something and idiotic and ridiculous said by a fellow student. He wrote great essays and was a kid I just couldn't figure out. He was always reading and reading stuff high school kids didn't usually read: Freudian psychology, Capote, Mailer, Tolstoy - a wide variety of stuff. He was huge into the psychedelic history of America (thus explaining the mind altering drugs) and on days his pupils weren't too dilated and his speech too slurred, he was a joy to have in class. So one day I decided to give him my copy of "A clockwork orange." I thought this would be right up his alley. It was - he wrote me a note thanking me for the book.
As a senior, there were many times he'd find me on my consultation hour and want to talk about the plight of the world, or Tibet, and tell me his plans for the future. I was never sure why he liked me - I was too mainstream - but it was fun to talk to him.
About a year after graduation (I gave him a card) I got a single-spaced, typed, 3 page letter from him telling me thanks for the card and about his adventured post graduation. He and a few friends went all Chris McCandless "into the wild" and hitchhiked to Alaska and lived off the land for the summer. That was over 1 year ago and up until yesterday, I haven't thought about this kid or heard from him.
Checking my voice mail yesterday morning I received a very strange message from over the weekend. The person speaking was obviously inebriated (drugs? alcohol? both?) and was so jumbled and mumbly that I could hardly understand the message. I understood, "...gave me your phone number...", and "wanted to let you know you were a great teacher..." and "this is "chase"."
Anyway, I'm happy to know that a student still remembers me - even if he's stoned out of his mind. I'm also a little nervous that he'll track me down. I'm not nearly as cool and hip as I once was - and I'm not sure it's safe for him to drive.
1 comment:
Interesting!
Mom
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