As far back as I can remember, I've always fallen under the category of overachiever. I am proud of this label; If you ask me, there's really no shame in raising your hand in every single class, as I have long been famous for. Whether or not I answered the question correctly wasn't my main goal. I just wanted to be a part of the class. As a result of this, my teachers could tell that I was someone who was eager to please; and when they handed back graded assignments, they also saw I was pretty bright.
It wasn't long before other students started to take notice.
Growing up, I was also painfully shy. I just never knew what to say to people, or how to behave in large groups (large groups have always frightened me, and they still do). Sometimes I would reach out to people, and sometimes they would reach back. Those people who reached back to me. Those who reached back to me became my friends, some of which I still keep in touch with today.
But then there were those who did not reach back to me; rather, there were those who sought me out. For homework help. Or proofreading assignments. Or reviewing for that big history test on Friday. Being the shy, smart (naïve?) girl I was, I was all too happy to lend a hand to people who needed help boosting those grades. After all, that's what friends are for, right?
Wrong.
To this very day, most of the people who come to me for help with school work don't see me as a friend; they see me as a tutor. To be honest, I don't blame them: I'm never without a book in my hands, I take notes religiously, and I'm usually the first one in class to hand in an assignment that's not due for two weeks.
While those witty observations are true, there's more to me than that.
There's a lot more to EVERY smart and quiet girl in every classroom, for that matter.
We don't just care about getting our Bachelor's; we may also care about getting tickets to the next Panic! at the Disco concert. We're not just really good friends with the professor; we may also have had the opportunity to meet the tight end of the New England Patriots (Gronk!). And we don't spend every night pouring over our textbooks; we may take out one night a week to go shopping at Downtown Crossing or have a drink at the Red Hat.
We may do all of these things, if people only thought to ask us a question different than, "What's the answer to number nine?"
I'm not bad-mouthing the people who have asked me for help in the past, nor am I forbidding people from asking me for help in the future. In fact, some of my "students" have turned into some pretty amazing friends who have expressed their gratitude towards me endlessly.
And guess what? Sometimes they even talk to me about things OTHER than school!
So the next time you need my help, or the help of any smart and quiet girl sitting in front of the class, don't hesitate to ask. But please, try to look at us as more than little teachers.
