This is just about the time of the year when I always start to question why I live in Minnesota, instead of somewhere like California or Hawaii where it really never gets cold! During the first few days of fall people have such a blah attitude. The sky clouds over, suddenly you notice this remarkable thing they call wind, and it's not the nice breezy kind, it's the pull your jacket tighter around your waist kind. I myself have been kind of blah today, but in a few days when the leaves start to change colors and my body temperature balances out with the outside temperature it will all be back to normal.

While sitting in Nutrition class today listening (or not listening) to my teacher go on and on about fats and lipids, I started daydreaming. I remembered when I was little and up until 2nd grade I never thought of teachers as people. I guess I thought of them more as drones who were implanted in schools to bore us to death with information we'd never need to know in the real world. I guess I thought that after we all went home they plugged themselves into the wall, powered-off, and recharged for the night.

In second grade we had a student teacher for half of the first semester. I hated her, I mean pure hatred (or as close as one can get to feeling like that at the age of 7). I don't even know why I hated her so much. I think I thought she dressed too frumpy (and we all know how keen my fashion sense was at that age, beaded fringed clothing ring a bell?)? Her hair was too blond and wavy?...I don't know, obviously I was just a superficial little bitch back then. Anyway, one day we were all getting ready to have story time. Ms. [insert appropriate elementary school teacher sounding last name here] informed us that she only had one week left of student teaching and then she would be gone. I don't know if it just slipped out or if I was trying to impress my friends but I yelled "YES"! It has been 18 years since then, I don't even remember what the lady looked like, but I will never forget the look of sadness I saw in her eyes when I looked at her that day. That day I realized that teachers were people, and I think that day was the day that I learned what compassion was (*tear*). Funny thing was after I realized she was actually a human being I clung to her, on her last day I was the last one to let go as she walked out of the door.

I'm not sure how or why I thought of that story today.

Turns out, teachers are people after all. Who knew?