We met for the first time back in late Aug. 2015. I began my junior year of college with high spirits and an internal drive to succeed in my classes, and I was confident that being accepted into the school of education would allow me the peace of mind to journey smoothly through the remainder of my university experience. Never once did I expect the hell and high water I would have to navigate through emotionally after entering your course.
My first impression of you following your grand entrance was that of pure shock, which later turned into a mixture of fear and utter frustration. After surviving an intensive and uninterrupted two hours and forty-five minutes of course content, every moment of which left my head spinning, I drove home only to collapse into bed and cry out my anxiousness until there was nothing left for me to do but sleep.
As I continued through your class, I was surprised to find that, despite my anger and fear, I was actually absorbing the information you taught. Following this realization, I was driven to be a better student. I finally understood that you were not only pushing me to test the limits of my sanity, but also challenging me to show my true spirit, reach my full potential, and in turn, make me a better individual.
It was in your course that I rediscovered my adoration for literature, writing, and all its amazing details. I slowly came to the conclusion that I could still love and work with such information, but not have to become a teacher to use it.
You urged us to travel and see the world in order to become more open minded for our future students, and so we could experience life, not settle for the ordinary. Although my path may not be to educate students, I still intend to “experience” and soak up the teachings of this remarkable world around me.
As you educated us in ways of managing a classroom and the aspects that come with it, such as making unexpected, quick, and sometimes difficult decisions, I also heard words of acceptance and encouragement to discover our own journey, and find the courage to face our own mountains to climb. I began to feel my own comfort zones stretching and my eyes opening to the diversity of the world. You also taught me that the unexpected should always be expected, and you can only prepare so much for it. The rest is human intuition.
So, I thank you, professor. I thank you for igniting a fire within me. I thank you for challenging my mental balances and scholarly abilities. I thank you for counseling me out of a college major that I was not content with, and encouraging me to be successful in something that I am truly passionate about. In your classroom, I unexpectedly learned so much more than just what was taught within the curriculum of your course. Thus, I thank you for scaring “the life into me.”
