MAKING AMAZEMENT

I’m sometimes amazed during my classes, but the amazement comes too seldom, considering that I’m always in the presence of astonishing events. There are so many startling occurrences during my classes that I should be shocked, in a sense, second after second. Each of my classes is miraculous – literally. No, there are no sudden shafts of light landing on my students and me, and no, no one is raised up from sickness during my classes, and yes, some students learn zippo in their 48 minutes in my classroom -- but still, there are absolute miracles made in our midst moment by moment. Consider this: oxygen atoms that may have been in Borneo or France a few days ago are given to our bloodstreams all during class. And this: my students and I each have 50 trillion cells in our bodies making pure magic for the full 48 minutes. And this: breezes that have never blown before in the history of the universe are constantly sailing past the classroom windows. And this: sunlight that has traveled 93 million miles takes its place silently on the windows while we’re working in class. Are not these miracles enough to make us amazed? Should we not stand in silence every so often during English class, out of respect for the spectacles unfolding before us?