It's the time of year when everywhere you look, there's inspiration for art. The low-lying fog over the soybean fields this morning on the way to work. The big puffy clouds on the horizon whose color I'm still trying to figure out (They weren't white, they weren't purple really, but I guess they could be in a painting; the shadows of the tops were the same color as the sky on the horizon...), the roses coming back to life in the cool fall air, the Monarch butterfly that hatched in my classroom today.
But the true inspiration today came from one of my students in the last 3 minutes of the last class. This 12-year-old kid came up to me and said, "You know, Mr. W., I've tried all week to be nice to this kid, cuz I was trying to live by the saying 'keep your friends close and your enemies closer', but I don't think I can do it any more, Mr. W. What would you do?"
Remember, this kid is 12. I'm not sure what this student's homelife is like, but I do know that he doesn't have many of the material advantages that many of our student body enjoys. However, this kid must have some sort of parent or influence at home to listen to his problems, and to give him this kind of advice - and the kid listened!
That in itself is worth more than a boat and 2 cars in your 3-car garage that's attached to your 3-story house with a stay-at-home-mom who may take you to soccer, but doesn't ever really listen to you.
So this little 3-inch angel from my studio is for today's inspirational student who confided in me at the end of a very long day. Thanks, kid, for reminding me that it's the human factor that matters.
I just hope I was able to inject a little bit of humanity into someone's life today.
Peace,
PastelGuy
2 comments:
I just read this after an incredibly stress filled family day and it made me tear up. From the beautiful description of a Fall morning to the great story about the junior high student. The twelve year old has made me realize I stressed over silly things today and this child has a better start at getting right in life than I do at 42! The story helped me get a grip on things and perked up my night!
Hi Matthew, you really have lovely inspirational things to say. It is so hard to put life in to perspective. Every now and then we have a moment or a wake up call that reminds us of the important things in life. Thankyou for your lovely way of sharing your moments with everyone through your blog.
Post a Comment