Now
comes the climax of every day; the epitome of chaos, cheesiness and disgust.
Yes, its seventh period. The hour of power. The hour of turmoil. The hour of
fear.
Actually,
it’s just a bunch of misfits that all managed to end up in the same room at the
same time. A horrific cacophony of adolescent goofiness that prevented any
learning from taking place. I tried to stand and deliver, but I only flopped
every time.
Nick, Ed
and Donald were three of the clowns always trying to make hay at my expense by
saying a cutsy remark. Nick was in league with Garrett from my other class.
Lots of muscles but a brain that couldn’t even read. I gave up trying to get
him to read our assigned English book. He read so slow it would take 15 minutes
to read one page.
Ed was
just a goof-off along with Donald both competing for comic effect. Not to
mention objects thrown at will any time I wasn’t staring at them that flooded
the floor with trash.
Need I
go on? Well, Alberto was late 30 minutes every day until he was threatened with suspension.
Then, he ended up being one of the first ones there every day.
Then, there
was the worse one: Lucas. Every time he arrived it spelled trouble which was
whenever he felt like coming. He had clear blue eyes that seemed to penetrate
to your very soul. He would challenge everything I said every time I said it.
And the class would scream or bang their desks when they liked what he said. Or
boo me.
If I moved a girl, he said I was sexist. If I
moved a Mexican, he said I was a racist or even if I pointed my finger at one.
If I read something from our book “Their Eyes Were Watching God” he didn’t
like, he was the first one to object. Then the class would follow him with a
show of noisy support.
One day, they was so much yelling and banging that
Mrs. Bell from next door ran in.
“Is anything wrong, Mrs. Bentz?”
Before I could answer back, I heard high
pitched screams and loud banging coming from
her room.
“Oops!
Better get back…”
It was
her kids responding to mine.
Finally, one day one of the girls couldn’t
take it anymore. Andrea screamed “Shut the f_ up!” as loud as she could and
fled out of the room. She sat in the hallway dejected. I prayed a quick prayer
that the Lord would help me. Then I got an idea.
“Andrea,
go get Mrs. Brockman from the Teacher’s Planning Area right now!” I yelled.
She ran and
got her and they both entered the room.
“Who’s
being bad this time?” Mrs. Brockman asked me.
“Lucas.”
I replied without hesitation.
“That’s
it?”
I
thought about it for a few minutes as I mumbled a few other names under my
breath. They looked at me with pleading eyes. Finally, I responded louder so
she could hear.
“Yes,
that’s it. Only Lucas.”
“All
right, buddy, come with me!” And Mrs. Brockman marched him out of the room. He
never came back.
It was
much quieter from that point on.
The last
day I would be with them as their sub, they unraveled a plastic Hawaiian lei
and let it trail out the window. I could just wonder what they thought on I-4
as the cars whizzed by. Needless to say, I was happy it was almost over.
Mrs.
Powers, they’re all yours now. Time for
you to have fun…
The Lord
sure taught me patience with them.. I could have lost my temper so many times
but I didn’t. Now, we’re all friends and I say “hi” to them every day in the
hallways.
It’s nice to be their former teacher…
Let patience have its perfect
work that ye may be perfect and entire, lacking nothing. (James 1:4)
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