When I was young, I had a thousand teachers. Not just school teachers, (although they're included) but other teachers also..some casually met and briefly encountered..neighbors, strangers, family, and friends.
There was my grandmother, in name only, as she was not a blood relative, but a woman who raised my father in a Connecticut orphanage. She taught me the value of a gentle word, forgiveness and trust. There was a fifth grade school teacher, who taught me the value of honesty, and gave me the gift of reading time that I otherwise would not have had at home. There was a neighbor, a hairdresser, who taught me that every person has some beautiful feature that they should be proud of. (As I was a gawky teenager at the time, this was no small lesson! :>)
There was a woman living near a friend's house, who was thought to be crazy, who taught me that dignity and manners were important, even when life had driven you over the edge. There was a science teacher who taught me that second chances were a reality, and hard work could pay off. An environmental science teacher taught me that there was no such thing as a free lunch, and a nurse showed me that doing the right thing was sometimes more important than obeying orders. A blind man in a park taught me that a handicap need not stop you from living..the list is endless.
Every one of these people had a hand in shaping me..in teaching me to live as hopefully and postively and effectively as I could, regardless of how dark it might get. Some of them I was lucky enough to know for a while, but some of them crossed my path for only a few brief moments. A word, a gesture...one action was all it took to print a lesson indelibly on my mind. They were everywhere!
But lately, I found myself wondering if those teachers are still out there. Not the school teachers of course..I know they are..but the others.. the people who stand as examples, who take a moment to touch a child, or a teen in a way that may help them grow to be honorable and compassionate men and women. The people who reach out for no reason at all except to help, to show..to guide. Today's children need them more than ever, I think..their world is darker, and more dangerous than mine was..there seems to be less and less instruction available to them in the hopeful lessons of life. When I was young, I thought nothing of striking up a conversation with a stranger in a park. A child who does that now courts danger. Who can a child turn to for lessons? Their parents of course, are very important teachers in their lives..but what of other lessons..in areas in which their parents may have no experience?
If you are lucky enough to have a trusting relationship with a child, teach them. They will thank you for it later. Maybe not in words, or in gifts, or in tribute. But definitely in deeds, thoughts and actions..
Remember, it will be these deeds, thoughts and actions that will shape the world of tomorrow..and I think we all hope for a better world, don't we?
Denise Ruiz
Editor - Seeker Magazine