Hey, you!

Yes, you...

Guess what.

I am a teacher and I want to be armed.

Go ahead, give it to me.

I want you to get behind your words for once, all of you.

I want you to stop blowing smoke rings and actually do something.

I want you to arm me.

Arm me with notebooks and colored pencils and tape and dry erase markers and construction paper. Arm me with worksheets and new textbooks. Arm me with a school environment free of bullying and hatred. Arm me with kindness and respect and a wage that doesn't force me to take on another job. Arm me with faculty that love their students and their career as much as I do. Arm me with a community that values education.

Arm me with what I need, not what you want.

But you won't do that, will you?

You're so willing to shell out the money for arming teachers, or at least, that's how you've been behaving.

You are so willing to put a gun in my classroom, yet you refuse to give me the tools I need to properly teach. And then you blame me for drop out rates, test scores, and student mental health problems. You blame me for failing as a teacher, for failing test scores and failing schools, but in reality, all the while, you're the one failing me - and your children.

No gun or training is going to fix the problem at hand. The problem at hand has arisen from years of detachment. Parents no longer respect educators and - in turn - students have grown into the same complacent attitude. But how can I blame them for this attitude? We as teachers deserve this treatment, don't we? What were we expecting, really? We don't do much; at least, that's what you think. You compare me to a glorified babysitter; don't deny it. I've heard you say it on multiple occasions. I can assure you, though, I did not go to college to wipe noses and change diapers. I am here to teach.

So arm me. Help me protect the educational environment. Give me what I need - give us all what we need to be successful teachers. Help us to blossom in our profession so we can help your children blossom into young men and women. I have devoted my life to educating students, to being there for them and supporting them, to being the mentor they so desire and need. I have devoted my life to helping them grow and discover both themselves and the world around them.

I have devoted my life to their lives and I am met with anger, disrespect, and resentment.

I am met with menial pay.

I am met with outdated and destroyed textbooks.

I am met with school buildings that are falling apart and a general public that no longer cares about my position or my role in their children's lives.

I am met with an all-encompassing wave of frustration and helplessness.

But by all means, give me a gun.