My Wildest Dreams — A Teacher’s Voice

Never in my wildest dreams did I think I would be a teacher. I was the youngest of three. I didn’t babysit as a teenager like most of my friends. I never thought twice about young kids. It wasn’t until I was a junior in college, sitting with friends on a freshly cut lawn, under an old oak tree, when a troop of three-year-olds skipped by. They were giggling and chatting, and within an instant, they captured my heart. I was magnetically drawn into their energy and spirit. I walked over and spoke to their teacher who asked if I might be interested in volunteering. From that day on my career fate was sealed. I quickly realized how much fun I had with young kids. We made puppets, sang songs, and grew sprouts in mason jars. What delighted me the most was the undercurrent of joy I felt just by being around them.

That joy I felt back then has stayed with me throughout my thirty-nine-year teaching career. I’ve spent thirty-six of those years at the Wheeler School. Having the opportunity to spend a lifetime laughing with kids has been the luckiest job I could have ever “ fallen into.” There’s nothing more inviting than walking into a classroom of second graders and being greeted with smiles and love. I know that sounds incredibly corny. Perhaps it is corny. But there’s no other way to describe the warmth and goodwill that a group of seven- and eight-year-olds offer to their teacher. And I was the fortuitous recipient of all those decades of love and joy.  

Having started teaching at Wheeler at the age of twenty-five, I like to say that I “grew up” on the corners of Angell and Hope Streets. This early start to my career brought with it some unexpected gifts, most importantly, lifetime friendships.

I leave Wheeler with a great sense of satisfaction knowing that I followed my intuition and heart on the grass so long ago. I am a better person for it.

Some of my closest friends in the world are the colleagues I worked with day in and day out over many years. Sitting in the Lower School office, eating lunch and laughing with colleagues as we helped each other raise our children, figure out solutions to personal ups and downs, and share hilarious stories about the adorable things our students happen to say that day, will always stay with me. We laid a foundation of trust and support on that little corner of the earth. 

I leave Wheeler with a great sense of satisfaction knowing that I followed my intuition and heart on the grass so long ago. I am a better person for it. 

Thank you to all the kids and families from this community who shared their second-grade year with me. You have enriched my life in a million and one ways. It has been a true honor.