Keep This Going

The first half of this school year I’ve been subbing.  Anywhere from pre-school to seniors in high school.  I taught anything from seventh grade girls chorus, boys with behavior disorders, level three special education, pe, ESL, French, home economics, and yes, I even taught band lessons to students who thought I had taught band before, when in fact I had never touched a flute or a trombone.

I worked hard and stayed professional and a month ago Friday a principal from a prestigious elementary in West Des Moines called me.  He said a teacher had resigned that day and that tomorrow I could interview to be the long term sub in that very third grade class.  You must know that this does not happen often at all.  I had subbed a lot at this elementary, knew the staff, and even some of the students.  Up until this point, I wasn’t sure if BreeAnn and I were going to be able to afford even a decent photographer for our wedding, and things were getting pretty tight.  Of course I would interview!  I studied hard and got my crap together.  And in less than 24 hours I was going to interview for a position that could potentially change my course of life, or at least change the course of the next five months.

I decided to wear my interview suit my parents had purchased for me in college.  The suit I wore when I got the job in Arizona.  The principal is ultra professional, so I knew he would appreciate it.  Upon coming in to the interview I looked around the room and saw two other teachers, a vice-principal, and a reading specialist.  They asked me to share a bit about myself.  After telling them I was from Cedar Falls and went to Iowa they said I would be hired.  I laughed a bit and looked around.  It turns out the principal was from Cedar Falls, went to Peet Junior High, and went to Iowa too.  Of course after saying that, they hammered me with questions for about an hour.  They asked me to leave the room and five minutes later they told me that they would not be interviewing the other teachers they had called and were moving forward with me.

So here is what I found out.  I would start Monday with a class that didn’t even know that their teacher had quit only one day before.  They hadn’t even said good-bye.  They have had no structure all year.  No consequences.  They ran the class.

Fast forward.  After three days of teaching, I wasn’t sure I was going to make it.  They are only third graders right?  But at the end of each day I felt like I had been beaten up.  My stomach literally hurt.  I wasn’t hungry.  Where had that feeling of joy and relief of getting a job gone?

That Thursday, and every day since then, I’ve been laying down the smack.  Some to my success and some to my failure.  It’s getting better, but a month into it, there is still room for tons of improvement.  I eat lunch with the kids every Wednesday, call/email parents, go to meetings, and have my own name card.  Overall, I’m glad to be back on a staff doing my thing.  And I know if I can turn this class around I will have a job in the fall.

These last seven or so months have been pretty up and down.  But 90% up.  The only major down has been financially.  And just when I wasn’t sure if I was going to afford anything, God steps in and got me a job.  Now, whether I have it or not in the fall, I’m not sure.  But at least I’ll be able to afford a wedding for now.

-David

This post is dedicated to the memory of Alex Dow