Teaching – and the Wonder of Life in a Blade of Grass

This is such a stirring post–a good teacher is not measurable by any standards, despite what NCLB and Race to the Bottom say…
Carol addresses the Native American belief of taking only what you need so that we may all share the resources. This ties into my post the other day on food scarcity and population growth–if we all only took what we needed, and didn’t waste food, there would be more to go around. And if we chose carefully on the size of our families, that, too, would address the problem. But when we have “reality” shows that glorify a family of nineteen kids…well, that sends the wrong message. It’s irresponsibility in my view. And it’s an ego trip for the parents who can’t possibly give each child the needed attention their individual psyches need to develop into their own unique selves bringing their own unique gift unto the world….

Voices from the Margins

Carol A. Hand

Although I didn’t realize it at the time, Sister Lorita, my undergraduate advisor from St. Xavier College for Women in Chicago, taught me more than botany. Through example, she taught me what it means to teach. Students made fun of her because of her weight and because of her enthusiasm for her subject, a subject they found boring. One day when we were meeting, Sister Lorita looked at me and said, “I know students laugh at me, but I don’t care if people make fun of me. It’s worth it to me if they learn to see the wonder of life in a blade of grass.”

“The wonder of life.” Isn’t that the most important thing we can learn? Although I was a chemistry and biology major at the time, my life took a different path. Instead of science, I teach students how to work with people…

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