“A Part of a Greater Reality”

(A Reflection Essay about being a Teacher)

To be honest, when I was still a kid, I never dreamed of becoming a teacher someday. Rather, it was my ultimate dream to become a soldier. I want to fly planes and to do some acrobatic movements in the air using high caliber and high flying fighting aircrafts. However, it was God who directed my way in this reality of being a teacher---a person who does the talking, lecturing, scolding and many other –ING things inside a classroom.

In the beginning, I was very afraid. I did not know what to do. I did not even know how to start. It was all question marks and self-doubts because I don’t even have the right degree to become a certified teacher. As time passes by, I learned the basics: lesson planning, tallying of grades, managing classrooms, working ethics and others. I thought it was all about those things, BUT I WAS WRONG. As I go on, I’m starting to realize the true essence of being a teacher. Firstly, I realized that being a teacher is going beyond the realm of the basics. Personally, I found out that being a teacher is not only about lesson planning, discussing, lecturing and others, moreover, it is a kind of vocation, a calling. It is a calling to be a part of a greater reality in the lives of your students. I realized that being a teacher is also about inspiring others to become better people someday. Being a teacher is not only about teaching but most especially it is also about learning. As part of this growth, I should say that I am really learning by my experiences and my students’ experiences. Being a teacher is also being transformed to be a better agent of renewal. I must admit that my students taught me to become more patient, to be more understandable, and to be more of a critical thinker. My students taught me how to have a heart. Secondly, I realized that being a teacher is learning to be with the joys and sufferings of your students. To be a teacher is being with your students through pains and happiness, through thick and thin, and through ups and downs of their lives. As a teacher, I learned a very important lesson---never abandon your students. I realized the meaning of the word love---that love is learning to accept the realities within one’s life, especially with the lives of your students. Lastly, as a neophyte teacher I learned how to be strong. There are moments in which my strengths are being tested. From honest to goodness, classroom management 101 says, “never cry in-front of your students.” However, I must admit that I am one of those teachers who already broke this lesson. Indeed, I just realized that crying is not merely showing that you are weak. Sometimes, it is just a proof enough that you are capable of accepting the realities of your vocation as a teacher. Being strong doesn’t mean being terror; but being strong entails your capability to touch the lives and hearts of your students for them to be greater persons someday.

In the end, I should say that being a teacher is not that easy. But, it is really a worth fulfilling mission. I think God is really good because He knows how to direct His creatures. Just like a shepherd to His flock, God showed me a greater way of not only expressing myself but most especially influencing and inspiring others. I may not be a perfect teacher, but I can say that I AM HAPPY and FULFILLED BEING A TEACHER. I am happy being a part of a greater reality in the lives of my every student.

---Teacher Jun---