The $20,000 Pay-Off

 I just received my first paycheck as a teacher.  OK, I got paid a week ago, but I haven’t cashed the check yet, (teachers don’t have time to go to the bank), so technically, I just got paid.  I looked at that beautiful piece of paper and two thoughts flew through my head, one on the heels of another.  The first was, “That’s a lot of deductions!”  The second was, “ It’s gonna’ take a long time to recupe the money we spent on that darn degree.”  Neither of those thoughts were a surprise.  I already knew, of course, how much my monthly check would be, and I knew that I would have to work a good long time before I would earn my tuition investment back. 

I have to take a sentence or two here to give a shout-out to my husband.  He has been amazing through this whole process.  When I told him I wanted to go back to school and earn a SECOND undergraduate degree, his immediate response was, “Do you realize how old you are?”  (No wait, that was my mother).  HIS response was, “I think it’s a great idea!”  I chose to attend a private, local university (I LUV UMary!), which meant higher tuition costs than a state school.  But My Man just kept doling out the bucks and encouraging me every step of the way.  Thanks, Sweetie.  I love you for loving me that much.  Especially knowing that we’re not going to get rich on my teaching salary.  My heart longed to be in the classroom, and he knew that doing something that was fulfilling for me would be payment enough for him.  True love…

So as I clutch the first of many (hopefully!) paychecks in my hand, here’s what I’ve learned so far about what teaching is and what it isn’t.

Teaching IS….

Early mornings and late nights.  Week-ends too!

Meetings for everything under the Sun (and the Moon and the stars).

Thinking about teaching most every minute of the day and night. 

Lots of mothering (Did you remember your library book?  Do you have a hat today?  What?  No gloves??  You brought Cheetos and a Fruit Roll-Up for lunch???  Do you need to use the bathroom?  Are you sure you don’t need to use the bathroom?  Do you have extra clothes here since you didn’t make it to the bathroom in time?  Don’t pick your nose, Sweetie.  What do you mean you can’t remember if you’re supposed to ride the bus or not?  Did you…can you…will you…well, you get the idea.

Exposure to every viral and/or bacterial microbe known to man.

Teaching is a desperate attempt to get the hang of your daily schedule (He was supposed to be where, WHEN??)

It is being supportive of all the extra-curricular activities that occur every week.

It is learning to take your place in the unspoken hierarchy of co-workers and faculty. 

It is taking the time to look your students in the eye and give your full attention when they have something important to say (for the 11^th time in an hour)

It is getting to know what excites each child in your class.  So far, our favorite topics are frogs, horses, dinosaurs, Transformers, the St. Louis Cardinals, and chicken burritos. 

What teaching is NOT:

High pay

Short hours

Leaving your work at work

Boring

I’ve learned in the last six weeks (six weeks ALREADY?) that I will never grow tired of looking into the faces of six-year-olds with missing teeth and a smudge of lunch still on their face.  I will always enjoy the thrill of witnessing that moment when knowledge becomes comprehension, and I will forever enjoy the challenge of making learning a joyous journey for every single child that ever walks through my classroom door.  I’m not naïve enough to think that I will meet every need of every child, like Helen Keller’s Annie Sullivan.  But I sure enough intend to try.

So six weeks into my first year I ask myself the foundational question, “Is teaching everything I had hoped it would be?”  The answer is yes, and so much more.  Sure, I’m pretty new to this gig.  But I fully believe it is what I was destined for.  Every morning when I walk through my door into my Magic Tree House themed classroom and switch on the lights, I look around, taking in the classroom that I had envisioned and then brought to reality, and without fail, I smile.  I smile because it feels like home.  It feels like my space.  It is where I belong.

Teaching is not a vocation for me.

Teaching is my calling and the fulfillment of a dream, 18 months of hard work, and two decades of delaying a career so that I could put family first.  It is the beginning of a new chapter for me.

You mean I get paid too??  Cool….