Sharing Hidden Scars

The One Who Needs You

As a teacher I realize that my students need me to be there for them every day, not just to teach academics, but to support them as take steps toward achieving their long-term goals. But some students need you more than others. And, at some point, there will be one student who needs you more than you realize; one whose life your compassion and care can alter for the better.

I stood at the door welcoming each student who walked into my classroom for language arts. Leslie walked in reluctantly on that first day of her eighth-grade year, acknowledging my greeting with a polite nod but otherwise not engaging with me. Even among the quirky group of students in the gifted program, she stood out; she was tall for her age and heavy-set with a tomboy crew cut and worn Chuck Taylors on her feet. She rarely spoke up in class those first few days, and I had been warned not to push her or she might shut down completely. Her work was always top-notch; thoughtful and creative, expressing her understanding with a wisdom that was uncanny for her age. Thus, I had been told by her previous teachers to let her be, as she was succeeding academically.