for the teachers!

ahoy! yesterday (May 15th) was the wonderful holiday called "Teacher's Day". Lot's of public school get the day off, mostly to avoid parents trying to bride teachers with expensive gifts in hopes that they will raise their childrens' grades.

I, myself, got one gift, but not from any of my girls at school. I happen to give free english lesson to my friends Eric (Yun-seok) and Young-Min, so Eric was very thoughtful and bought me a really nice clock for my wall. I feel well-loved! ^^

Anyway, below is a brief ode to all the teachers that influenced me in a positive way!

Elementary School
Mrs Sipple: kindergarten. I don't remember much about her besides the fact that I adored her.
Mrs Hunter: Gr 2. This was the woman who was partially responsible for sending me into Gr 3 a year early. Thanks! I appreciate it!
Mrs Soulberger: Gr 4. Mentioned for no other reason than her powerful name. Also, I remember she introduced me to one of my favourite books - A Wrinkle in Time. I was the only kid in class who giggled when she said "tentacle". My mom was obviously ahead of the game on sex ed.
Mrs Head: Gr 5. This woman was a tell-it-like-it-is kinda gal and I dug that about her. I was warned she was a witch so on the first day of class I was terrified, but it worked out in the end!
Mrs Tacoma: Gr 8. Another piss-and-vinegar lady with whom I got along grandly! She didn't take any bullshit when it came to pubescent 8th grader antics. Right on, sista!

High School (in no particular order)
Mr Restivo: Gr 9 English/Religion. A sweetheart of a man who looked like super mario and was not ashamed to dress up like him for halloween. He dealt out tough love where needed, but always respected those who respected him.
Mrs Furbacher: (Gr 9, 11 Math, Calc, Algebra). This woman is a goddess among insects when it comes to teaching math. consistent, efficient, helpful and a no-nonsense exterior with a mischevous twinkle in her eye.
Mr Buffalino: (Gr 9 history). Funny guy, sometimes swore in class which obviously gained the respect of his still-pubescent students.
Mr Cino: (Gr 10 math, Data processing, Gr 12 law) A man who knew when he was out of his element. He was the teacher who had the unfortunate job of teaching anything put on his plate. He was patient enough to deal with the attitude I dished out when I was bored in class. how did he deal? "Sure Vanessa, you can leave class. See you next week."
Mr DiFranco: (Gr 10 Science, Gr 11 Chem, OAC Chem) This is the man who began his class by annoucing that he was a really big jerk. Right, you got my attention now. He always played up the difficulty of his class which would motivate several students to drop it after the first day. wusses. his catch phrase was "Gob Bless" and he would ever so often exchange academic learning for some talk about life and life lessons. One particular day when I was freaking out about failed titrations, he came to me as I was on the verge of tears and said wisely, "Relax, Vanessa. It doesn't matter. High school doesn't matter." I scoffed inwardly at the time, but oh how true it is.
Mr Weber: (Physics) I have no inclination towards physics, but Mr Weber's attitude and comforting voice enticed me to do my best. Also, he leant me a book on Forensics which I really enjoyed. He was the first teacher to tell me that even though he had been teaching for 5 years, he still wasn't sure that it was what he wanted to do as a career. That opened my eyes to the possibility of change and the fact that it's ok to be unsure, as long as you don't do nothing while you make a decision!
Mr DiFlavio: (Western Civ) This man challenged me more than any other teacher both in my methods of research and writing and in my thoughts about history and philosophy in general. I attribute his pushing to my essay writing success in university. Very few teachers pushed me and challenged me like he did.
Ms Maccaroni: (Gr 11-OAC Music) Possibly my most influential teacher in high school, she encouraged my musical ability and helped me to realise that it was ok to change my major from science to music. Before I met her, my mind was very focussed on science, but her enthusiasm, fresh mind and passion opened my eyes to a very different world. Partly because of her, I had the greatest university experience possible. That's sayin' somethin', eh?

I'll leave it at that. Tackling university professors would be too daunting, methinks!
Thanks to all the teachers out there who still believe in the potential of students!