Diving into more summer fun with another interesting teacher story! We spend some time every year on a lake in Northern Michigan with several other families. One year, I was very surprised when the father of one family asked for my advice regarding a career change. He and his wife had been attorneys for over 20 years and he was contemplating becoming a teacher. Wow! The grass must be greener on the other side of this story.
At the time, I was really down on the profession. In light of that, I explained some of the concerns and added several benefits (Chicken Noodle Soup for the Soul style). Needless to say, he has just completed his 2nd year in the classroom. He is having a great time, no looking back. After giving him a copy of the book I published at a bbq they hosted, he shared another story that again emphasizes another benefit of our profession that we sometimes do not recognize. He explained that he was coaching cross country with the former football coach and explained how cool it was working together. His assistant was a student at the high school and is most winning football coach in the history of the school. In addition, he mentioned that a very good/meaningful friendship had started too. Curious, I asked if that was part of the game in his previous occupation. He explained it was not and went on to say that the work environment was different in schools and encouraged tighter bonds among colleagues. Something that did not happen in the office setting of his law firm. Sighting an English teacher’s willingness to help him with a new prep over coffee or spending time around school with his assistant coach, our profession does offer a unique structure that is excellent for forging meaningful friendship that last a lifetime. I could not agree more!