My Best Teaching Experience

Tyler was only in my senior class for a semester. He had been suspended (使停学) many times in previous years because of his anger issues. When he entered my class, I thought the worst.

Tyler sat in the back row. Every time I talked to the class, I would ask students questions, calling them by name. Unfortunately, every time I called on Tyler, he would respond with a joke. If he got an answer wrong, he would become angry.

About a month into the year, I was still trying to connect with Tyler. I can usually get students involved in class discussions or at least have them sit quietly and attentively (专心地). By contrast, Tyler was often loud and sometimes rude.

He had been in so much trouble over the years. He expected his teachers to know about his past; about how many times he had been sent to the office or suspended from school. I had found that these sorts of referrals (移交) were not very effective and that students would return from the office behaving worse than before.

One day, Tyler was talking over me while I was teaching. I stopped my lesson and said, “Tyler, why don’t you join in our discussion instead of having one of your own?” With that, he got up from his chair, pushed it over and yelled something. I can’t remember what he said other than that he included some impolite words. I sent Tyler straight to the office, and he received a week’s suspension.

To this point, this was one of my worst teaching experiences. Tyler’s anger was almost too much for me. The week Tyler was suspended from school was a wonderful time, and we got a lot accomplished as a class. However, the suspension week would soon come to an end, and I was fearful of his return.

On the day of Tyler’s return, I stood at the door awaiting him.

A spark of surprise flashed across his face.

Cody always knew his family was different. While other kids went to the beach for summer vacation, he and his mom visited the world’s largest baseball bat or the world’s largest fork. Cody’s mom even had photos framed on the wall.

As a kid, Cody thought these vacations were the best ever. But later, somewhere during their search for the world’s biggest ball of twine(麻团), he started to feel embarrassed. When his classmates, especially Nathan, asked where he’d gone for vacation, he’d say, “No place special.”

Cody could tell that his mom was planning something when she walked into the kitchen with a shine in her eye. It was the same shine she’d had on those photos! “I was reading this article about the world’s largest gathering of people dressed as turkeys. It was in Texas, and it was only 661 people! Five times as many people living in our town.”

“And then?” Cody doubted.

“We can hold a similar one here around Thanksgiving!”

“Mom,” Cody said. “No.”

“Yes,” Mom confirmed. “I just called the newspaper. The announcement runs tomorrow. The day after Thanksgiving, everyone will meet in the town square, dressed as turkeys!”

Cody could do nothing but sigh.

Back to school the next day, Nathan shouted, “Hey, Cody!” Whenever Nathan talked, it always meant trouble. “Gobble(火鸡叫), gobble!” Nathan came strutting(昂首阔步走)like a turkey. Other kids laughed as Cody rushed to the class. It turned out that the announcement wasn’t just in the paper but all over social media.

The big day came. But instead of dancing around the house as she’d been all week, Mom was sitting on the floor, shoulders drooping. She was staring at the electronic equipment. “I can’t believe the DJ(音响师)is sick. Without music, how can we make the gathering festive?” Mom sighed sadly.

Cody looked at his mom, thinking that this was his chance to escape. No more gobbling. No more strutting. No more embarrassment.

But the framed photos on the wall came into his sight before he could say something.

Cody was setting music in the town square when he heard a familiar voice behind him.

I had just a very wonderful day. Although all my days are always wonderful to me, the day was completely different. There was a bulletin board saying that they would need to find volleyball players for the girls and I was so happy! I have been loving playing volleyball since my mother taught me how to play. I was so excited that I couldn’t wait to play! Then I read more what was on that bulletin board, which said that there would be an audition (面试) after three weeks! “Three weeks?” I thought about it. I did know how to play volleyball but I was not much of an expert in doing it but I still wanted to try.

After that I was determined to practice volleyball every day. I practiced hard again and again each day and I never got tired of doing the same practice through all the days, and finally, the day came. I was so prepared for this and hurried to the gym to audition. When I had reached the gym, I was surprised to see that 12 or 14 girls were lining up and I guessed I was the last one to arrive. Then our audition began. Some of the girls failed to pass the audition and some passed.

There was only 1 slot left to complete the 6 girls to join the volleyball team and suddenly I felt nervous because the person in front of me was going to take her serve (发球). Then the girl hit the ball and then… the ball didn’t pass over the net. The girl slapped her forehead and left, leaving me standing in the middle of the court.

Then the coach spoke, “Okay, you, serve! ” She handed me the ball and I caught it with my hands. As the ball was in my hands, my hands were suddenly sweating and so was I!

I then suddenly became nervous about this. “Maybe I should be back of,” I told myself.

Then I began. I came to a pause, taking a deep breath.

Jenny was the only child in her family. She had a quarrel (吵架) with her mother that afternoon and she ran out of the house angrily. She couldn’t help weeping sorrowfully when she thought of the scolding from her mother. Having wandered aimlessly in the street for hours, she felt a little hungry and wished for something to eat. She stood beside a stand (货摊) for a while, watching the middle-aged seller busy doing his business. However, with no money in hand, she gave a sigh and had to leave.

The seller behind the stand noticed the young girl and asked, “Hey, girl, you want to have the noodles?”

“Oh, yes, but I don’t have money on me.” she replied.

“That’s nothing. I’ll treat you today,” said the man, “Come in.”

The seller brought her a bowl of noodles, whose smell was so attractive. As she was eating, Jenny cried silently.

“What is it?” asked the man kindly.

“Nothing. Actually, I was just touched by your kindness!” said Jenny as she wiped her tears. “Even a stranger on the street will give me a bowl of noodles, while my mother drove me out of the house. She showed no care for me. She is so merciless compared to a stranger!”

Hearing the words, the seller smiled, “Girl, do you really think so? I only gave you a bowl of noodles and you thanked me a lot. But it is your mother who has raised you since you were a baby. Can you remember the times she cooked for you? Have you expressed your gratitude to her?”

Jenny sat there, speechless and numb with shock: she remembered her mother’s familiar face and weathered hands. “Why didn’t I think of that? A bowl of noodles from a stranger made me feel grateful. Why haven’t I thanked my mum for what she has done for me?”

On the way home. Jenny made up her mind to make an apology to her mother for her rudeness as soon as she arrived home.

Nearing the doorway, Jenny took a deep breath.

At that time, her mother came back and touched her hair gently, which called her mind back.

At first, Michael didn’t see the black smoke or flames shooting from the windows of his neighbors’ home. He and his wife had just parked around the corner from their own house when they got a call from one of his daughters: “The house next door is on fire!” He went to check. That’s when he saw two women and a girl helpless and heartbroken on their doorway.

“The baby’s in there!” one of the women cried. Though the fire department had been called, Michael, then 64, immediately ran inside. “The baby” was 8-year-old Tiara, the woman’s granddaughter and a playmate of Michael’s three youngest kids.

The thick smoke caused Michael to stumble blindly around, burned his eyes, and made it impossible to breathe.

After a few minutes in the smoke-filled house, he retreated outside to catch his breath. “Where is Tiara?” he asked desperately.

“The second floor,” her aunt shouted back.

Michael knew he couldn’t hold his breath for long. However, taking a deep breath, he went in a second time. The darkness was overwhelming. Yet because the house had a similar design to his, he made it to the second floor. He turned to the right and was met by intense heat. He was already out of breath.

“Baby girl, where are you?”

His throat and lungs burned as if he’d inhaled fire instead of the smoke in the air. Every blink stung his eyes. All he could hear was the crackling and popping of burning wood. Then a soft but distinct moan emerged. Still unable to see, Michael fell to his knees on the hot wood floor. He crawled toward the sound, feeling around for any sign of the girl. An unlucky thought crossed his mind: I’m probably gonna die up here.

Finally, Michael touched something.

Tiara was safe now; however, Michael fainted down to the ground, unconscious.

“Do you mind if I join you?” I asked the two women seated at the table. As a new employee, I felt awkward about approaching them, but there were no other seats in the dining hall. Then I introduced myself and sat down. The two women nodded to me and continued chatting.

While eating my lunch, suddenly I was shocked by one of the women’s words. She said, “My family has decided to give up our dog and let her live on her own. She just can’t fit into our family. And no one wants her.”

Coming from a family whose home could be a petting zoo, I was shocked to think that people could be so heartless. Feeling concerned about the dog, I asked my new co-worker a few questions about the dog. She shared that the dog’s name was Lady. She had trained as a guide dog for the blind, but she failed her final test because she wanted too many hugs after completing her tasks.

I asked the woman to give me some time to contact my mom as we would consider adopting her. Since my mom had a kind heart, I knew she would agree and that Lady would have a home with us. After work, I drove to pick up Lady. An old woman greeted me at the door, leading me to the kitchen. There sat this beautiful but very thin dog, lying in the corner and licking (舔) her right paw. “She did that to herself,” the woman said as she pointed to the injured paw. She continued, “That dog is hopeless!” The woman then took a broom and forced Lady to stand with the broom. There were no goodbyes from this family, just a sense of relief because Lady was no longer their problem.

I sat on the sidewalk with her and introduced myself. For me, it was love at first sight. She had a beautiful face, but the saddest eyes. “Lady,” I said. “I’m taking you to your new home. And I promise you that my family will always love you. Please give us a chance.” I helped Lady get into my car, and our new journey began.

As I pulled into our driveway, my mom was waiting with open arms and delicious dog treats.

One day, my mom did something magic which made Lady start to open her heart.

On the weekend, I went shopping and after walking around for a while, I felt tired so I decided to get a cup of coffee. As I was making my way to the coffee shop, I noticed an older gentleman rather poorly dressed sitting on a bench nearby. I knew from first sight that he was in need of some kind of help. He had a little lunch put in front of him and was wholeheartedly enjoying it. It was also rather clear that he had a problem with his right eye and probably couldn’t see out of it. I wasn’t thinking about it any more, and then joined the line, waiting to be served. 

Then it happened---one of the most beautiful gestures I have ever seen in my life.

There was a young man in front of me in the line who was also waiting to be served. As the young man approached the counter to place his order, he noticed the older gentleman sitting on the bench nearby. Without hesitation, he turned back to the cashier and asked if they could provide a free cup of tea for the elderly man. The cashier was surprised by his sudden request, hesitating for a moment and nodding in agreement.

The young man then went on to pay for not only his own drink but also another one, which he handed to the older gentleman with a warm smile. The older man looked up, surprised and grateful, as the young man sat down beside him on the bench. They began to chat, and I couldn’t help but feel touched by this simple act of kindness.