An uncompromising teacher is like a savings account. You deposit a lot in class, but the payment in the future overflows.

Perhaps the most underrated person in society is the austere teacher. I know I can certainly name a few who had severe rules against gum chewing, wearing hats in class, and being verbs. In seventh grade, I had a teacher who would dole out detentions to the students who forgot to bring a pencil.

In this teacher's class, a D meant a B by any normal standard. Papers dripped in scarlet ink. And students muttered obscenities about said instructor in the hallway. Even though I had my fair share of complaints against my educator, my heart saturates in guilt because the uncompromising teacher has dispensed numerous amounts of blessings.

Thank you for never trying to be a "cool teacher."

Of course, you are cool. However, you never succumbed to the stress other teachers felt to relive their teenage years as one of the students. Through this, you taught me to never yield to social molds. I should never waver with what I believe, and I should stand firm when everyone else collapses under pressure.

Thank you for making me work hard to earn grades.

You helped me learn I can withstand difficult obstacles such as the need to incorporate 20 sources into my research paper or to write an analysis without a run-on sentence. In your class, whenever I clasped an A paper, I felt like you had handed me a sheet of solid gold. If I could make it through eighth period with you, I could survive anything.

Thank you for absorbing criticism.

Because I crumble whenever someone disapproves of me, I admire your tenacity under when students throw you under attack. Angry emails and curses muttered under breaths must torture you. Especially because you want your students to succeed. But you continue to stay resolute in spite of denunciation.

Thank you for shaping me for the future.

Because of you, I can write any assignment with ease. The penalties for grammar and punctuation errors have benefited me in college. Your strict deadline policies have prepared me for when I have time limits for an employer.

Thank you for everything.

I owe my future success to you. Although I struggled in your class, I would take the subject again without a second thought. If I have children some day, I hope they have a teacher half as good as you.