I've loved to write ever since middle school. I had notebooks filled with plays, screenplays, songs, poems and short stories. Writing lets me express myself in a way that speaking just doesn't cover. I want to create classics, stories that mean something to people, stories that people will relate to. However, reality is a semi-cruel thing and I realized maybe writing wasn't the most lucrative or practical career choice. So writing became something I did in my free time, a hobby. No more Reader's Digest contests, no more online submissions, no more blogs. Just unread stories sitting on my laptop and in my notebooks. That all changed during my senior year, because of one man.
Have you ever seen the movie "Dead Poets Society"? Where Robin Williams plays the inspirational English teacher Mr. Keating in a boring, stuffy prep school. You know, "O! Captain, My Captain!". No? How about for all my millennials out there, Feenay! Mr. Feeny from "Boy Meets World" who dropped knowledge on Corey and his crew weekly. Well, I was fortunate enough to have a teacher like Mr. Keating and Mr. Feeny. A teacher with a genuine passion for life, and his students.
My senior year of high school I needed to fill my second semester with an every other day class. I had already chosen two movie courses, and now I figured I'll go for the other strength, English. I came upon Monsters in Literature. A class where we would discuss...well, monsters....in literature. Easy enough, right? Because what senior was going to choose a class that required actual thinking?
I entered that first day and realized that my teacher was a total...hippie. He was bald with a goatee, rings on his fingers, with a total Cali surfer voice. He was by far the coolest teacher I had come across in my high school career. After multiple lectures about "Dracula", "Grendel" and the obvious other famous monsters, he asked us what made a monster a monster? With that, came the outline for the final project. Our very own monster story. I went with a sort of sequel to the horror epic "Rosemary's Baby", 10 pages of a horror/monster story that all came from my head. I was pleased with my grade, and my story was used as a sample for upcoming classes.
My teacher had asked me if I had thought of continuing writing in college? I had explained that even though I loved to write that it just wasn't a practical career for me and I wasn't entirely sure what I wanted to do with my life. What this man said to me next, has stuck with me ever since. The most profound piece of advice that I had ever received in my adolescence, and probably most of my adult life.
He said..."Nothing in this life is permanent, even if you choose something and realize you hate it, you can always do something else."
He then explained that even though he was a teacher and loved it, that he also shared a passion for music. He recorded albums and released them online and he played gigs in local places. He told me that there was always time to do things you're passionate about. This stuck with me.
After I graduated we kept in touch. Besides the normal "how are you?" chit chat, I would send him my stories. He would share his thoughts, opinions and even guide me when I had writer's block. I have yet to meet another teacher that has inspired me the way that he did. I continue writing today because of his advice, because of his genuine faith in my abilities as a writer.
For that, thank you. For believing in a 17-year-old who didn't really believe in herself. For telling me that it's OK to choose the wrong thing because nothing is permanent. "O! Captain, my Captain!", my first literary masterpiece will be dedicated to you.
Until that day comes. This article, my first article, is dedicated to YOU.
To all the inspiring teachers in the world who reach students in such a way that it changes their thinking. To the teachers who help kids see in themselves what they couldn't before. Your gift does not go unnoticed or unappreciated. I hope every student happens upon an inspiring teacher like I did. You'll be a better person for it.
