STEPPING OFF THE STAGE

More and more, I feel the need to observe myself as I go about my teaching duties. I need to occasionally step to the side of the stage, in my mind, and simply watch this 68-year-old teacher perform in his classroom. If could do this now and then, I would see that everything, in a way, is just fine – that no matter what I do in the classroom, including no matter what mistakes I make, the show turns out to be fairly satisfactory. Stepping back and observing myself would settle me down, make me see that teaching, in fact, is nothing personal. Education is not about some center-stage, powerhouse teacher leading his students to the heights of wisdom. English class is not a drama with a protagonist called Mr. Salsich. It’s just another of a zillion enthralling pageants the universe puts on for entertainment’s sake, and getting down off the stage now and then, at least in my mind, would help me appreciate it. “Wow,” I might say, “look at me up there trying to teach. Whether I succeed or fail, I seem to do both pretty well. I seem to be excellent at both winning and losing in the classroom.”