Sergio was my grade four teacher. I do not remember the circumstances that made me want so desperately to be in his class, but I do remember the first day of school that year, going up to him so anxiously to see if I was in his class or not. I was elated when I found out my name was on his roster! Sergio was the teacher no one ever wanted to disappoint. One time we had a substitute, who we treated pretty poorly... and when Sergio returned he talked to us so quietly, and looked so sad... we were devastated. He didn't need to yell, he didn't need to threaten us with punishments, we just fessed up and apologised and truly felt awful. He was also the teacher who played guitar and would teach us these great songs like "In the Jungle" and "Lean On Me"
Grade four was the year my family discovered we would be moving to the Netherlands. During the spring, my parents left for two weeks for a go-see trip, and left me in Sergio's care the morning of their flight, crying my eyes out in the hallway. He sat out in the hall with me for a few minutes until I could get myself together, then gave me some individual things to work on so I would have some time to settle down before being expected to interact with the rest of my classmates.
As I mentioned when I began this blog, I come from a family of writers. When I was young my mum really encouraged me to write letters, especially when we moved to Rotterdam. I wrote to Sergio. He wrote back. We're still friends. In fact, Sergio & his wife attended my wedding last year (I was ecstatic).
Writing this letter to Sergio was a chance for me to express some thanks to him for being such an important part of my life. I also used it as a chance to send him a photo I had promised him months ago and haven't gotten around to sending yet. Writing to Sergio always brings on feelings of nostalgia and inspiration for me. When I thought I wanted to teach school, I knew I wanted to be like him in my teaching style. Being around Sergio makes me want to help and inspire others, which I am trying more and more to act on.
No comments:
Post a Comment