Consider, despite the nonsense swirling around us, stirred by the likes of Shakespeare's witches, they still only have that one eye between all three of them and cannot see what we do. They cannot see the faces of the children looking up at us each and every day. They have no idea what these children need, nor how to give it to them. They look at them and see thousands of dollars in each and every child, and can think only of how to get that money to people like themselves, who need it least.
We stand up for the children, and object when they are subject to endless testing so the reformies can gather baseless data to defame us. We cry out when they are herded into classrooms like sardines, and object when the likes of Eva Moskowitz subjects them to tortures that would rightfully land us on the unemployment line. We object when the governor and the Regents spout nonsense and push spineless legislators into passing it for no good reason.
And when our own union leadership gets down and supports junk science evaluation, mayoral control, Common Core, school closings, charter schools and other things that hurt parents, children and working teachers, we stand up to them too. Maybe we are naive and just not smart enough to understand why we should support things that hurt us and our children.
But most importantly, we're in classrooms helping children each and every day. People who make many times our salaries to oppose or mislead us will never understand or appreciate why that's important. They will never understand what it is to have the appreciation of a kid we've helped with something important to the kid. They will never understand why this is the best job in the world, and no it isn't because of July and/ or August.
But we know. We know when kids lack a stable role model that we are the second best thing they can have. We know that our jobs are important, maybe second only to doctors in importance. We know our value, and it's not because we read it on some rubric-based evaluation telling us whether we're 1, 2, 3 or 4.
So enjoy your time off, enjoy your homes and families, and know that there are many of us, and many public school children, and a whole lot of their parents too, who understand and appreciate what it is we do every day of our working lives. Be thankful for whatever you're thankful for, as will I, and be thankful for them, too. I'm thankful for my readers and I wish every one of you a great year, despite all odds!
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