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Topic: Elementary School (07/19/04)
TITLE: His first teacher By Angela Moore 07/26/04 |
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It seemed that the teacher was telling them the rules. They were supposed to be nice to each other and respect each other. Fights were not allowed if they wanted rewards and no bad words or harsh things were supposed to be said. The little boy thought of his younger sister at home. He didn't like being mean to her, but she asked for it sometimes. I just can't help it! he would cry to his mother when he was chastised. His mother would shake her head and plead with him to behave. But the teacher didn't plead. The teacher said they had a choice to live that way. That's much better than having to... thought the little boy.
The teacher told stories to make his point clear about what was expected. He used illustrations that made it easy for the little boy to understand what he was supposed to do and why. He liked stories about people who were nice. Nice people were heroes. Heroes were people that the little boy wanted to be like. Maybe he would be like this teacher.
The teacher continued. It seemed that everyone around the little boy was mesmerized. No one was moving. He must be a very good teacher for even all the adults to come, he thought. His mother sat off at a short distance. She didn't even appear to be blinking. The little boy was drawn back to the teacher, his enchanting voice drawing him nearer and nearer to something that felt so good. Something deep inside of him. Something that he only felt when he would run free in a big field after butterflies and chase them until he could see stars above him. Something he felt when he was nestled tightly in his mother's arms after a long day of playing. Something he felt when all was right with his little world. Something good.
The teacher stopped teaching and began to walk down the hill. The little boy ran to him to hug him. How he wanted to be like this teacher! He could hear adults all around him telling him to stop and to leave the teacher alone. One man even grabbed his arm to stop him. The teacher turned around and told the crowd to leave the children alone and to let them come. The little boy walked up to the teacher and hugged him around his waist. He could feel the teacher's arms around his little body and he smiled. He stepped back, looked up into the face of the teacher and said "Thank you, Mr. Jesus."
The teacher smiled, said "Thank you," and then walked down the hill, appearing to float on air.