to teach…

I am a teacher. It’s not just my profession, it’s part of the essence of my being. The most phenomenal people I know are teachers – whether it be by nature or by profession. I will fight the corner of teachers ’til the day I die because I know how many times I’ve just gone with the smile and nod option simply because I didn’t have the emotional energy to defend my so-called ‘half day job’.

It really grates my carrots when people make flippant comments about teaching being a half day job or about how it must be so nice to get so many long holidays.

Most high school teachers I know engage with more than 150 teenagers face-to-face on any given day. Each of these 150 plus precious individuals require attention but they are individuals and they require different attention. One child needs me to tell her that her hair looks pretty (because nobody else bothers to do so), another needs me to tell them they can do better, another needs me to make a joke about how their biceps are busting out of their school shirt and another needs me to tell them about this interesting article I read in the week so they can go and research the matter further. One child needs me to ignore their desperate cries for attention, albeit negative attention and yet another just longs for one look, one word of affirmation. There are very few other jobs that require this level of emotional intelligence, energy and wisdom.

Many people don’t know this but according to the Norms and Standards for Educators as per the South African Government Gazette, an educator has 7 primary roles:

1. Specialist in a phase, subject discipline or practice 
2. Learning mediator 
3. Interpreter and designer of learning programmes and materials 
4. Leader, administrator and manager
5. Scholar, researcher and lifelong learner 
6. Assessor 
7. Community, citizenship and pastoral role  

The first time I encountered those roles was whilst reading one of my textbooks for my Post Graduate Certificate in Education. My first thought was honestly, “How can one person be 7 things all at once?” Little did I know that a teacher is often more than 50 things at once: a listener, an entertainer, a critical thinker, a creator, a referee, a disciplinarian, a mentor, an enemy, a consolidator, a planner, a communicator, a celebrity a therapist, a comedian, a mediator, an organizer, an evaluator,a police officer, a facilitator, a collaborator, an expert, a leader, an integrator, a philanthropist, a sacrificer, a hard worker, a thinker, a discerner, an encourager, a motivator, a challenger, a parent, a giver and a role model. Whilst this may seem like a long list of titles, I can assure you all the teachers I know are these things and more every day of their lives. They get paid peanuts, work harder than most and they earn every damn minute of their long holidays. I maintain that if it weren’t for these holidays that we’d see a whole lot more teachers in mental hospitals but that’s another story for another day.

Jonathan Jansen recently said, “Teaching is not for sissies. It demands deep thinking, courageous actions and human compassion. It combines the disciplines of drama, psychology, design, instruction, social work and networking. To teach in the 21st century requires knowledge not only of the subject and of children, but of digital economies that connect to real lives no longer enthused by paper and pencil technologies. In other words, it is a profession for really smart people on the lookout for a challenge.”

I really could write for days about this topic but I will say this: Teachers are superheroes. Full stop.

So, if you have a friend that’s a teacher, encourage them regularly. If there’s a teacher who made an impact on your life, look them up and tell them that – it will mean more than you’ll ever know. Don’t assume that you know what being a teacher feels like if you aren’t one. If you have children, thank their teachers at every opportunity you get. And if you’re brave enough, just go and sit in a classroom for a day, follow a teacher around from 6am til 11pm and you’ll see what I mean…

Often people tell me that being a teacher must be ‘so rewarding’ – I will tell you this: Teaching is like planting trees under the shade of which you never expect to sit. Every single day you labour, you plant seed after seed in good faith, you nurture them with all you’ve got and in your heart of hearts you just hope that in some way, the sacrifices that you make are worth it all.

passion and purpose

There is something about opening up my laptop to type a blog post that I just love. I love the opportunity of a blank canvas. What a privilege to have the ability to create an artwork that expresses something of the intricacies of my soul. When I write I feel free, like I’m standing on a beach, like the wind is blowing away all my fear and anguish, like I am beautiful and at peace. I love to write. I love that I have something to say and that people, for one reason or another want to read it. I love that people noticed (even complained) when I didn’t post a blog last Thursday. In fact, I love many things other than writing. (For more of the things I love, read my “about me” section by clicking on the link above.)

But enough about me, what do you love? What is it that makes your being rejoice? What makes you come alive? Gives you a reason for living, invigorates your soul? What are you passionate about? What lights you up, gives you energy, or ignites your imagination? What do you love?

Why do I ask? Well, the answer is simple. I have recently been engaging in much reflection regarding my career, my future, my passions and my calling. I presume I am not alone in these questions as I know that deep within each person is a longing for purpose. In my reflection I have been reminded that we love the things we love for a very important reason. Our purpose lies at the very heart of the things we love.

Your calling or your purpose is found at the intersection between your greatest gladness, and the world’s deepest hunger.

 You love what you love because the things you love and your love itself can be used to satisfy the needs of the world. So often we believe that the things we love and the needs of the world are unrelated. We compartmentalize our passions so far from the reality of the needs around us that we rarely consider how they may possibly intersect. We are afraid to even think of the “needs of the world”, it is often far easier to deal with our own lives, to focus on ourselves. Let’s be honest, sometimes that’s all we feel we have the energy to accomplish.

Howard Thurman once said, “Don’t ask yourself what the world needs. Ask yourself what makes you come alive and then go do that. Because what the world needs is people who have come alive.” I disagree with his suggestion that we shouldn’t ask ourselves what the world needs because I believe we should, however I echo his sentiments regarding our need to come alive.  I submit that perhaps if we are truly “alive”, following our passions, that we will be better equipped to meet the needs of the world.

As we enter the fabulous season of Spring, allow the breeze of fresh newness to blow into your mind and the blooms of love and passion to grow in your heart as we remind ourselves of our hearts’ greatest loves and the world’s greatest needs and their intersection’s importance for humanity…