Why I teach

I have this kid...lets call him Reese - not his real name, but I really like this kid and I love that name.

So Reese has had most certainly the shittiest year of his entire life. I won't tell you what happened to him specifically, but it was a loss, and it was in a very heinous manor that Reese experienced the loss of a loved one.

He is terribly smart, but also the most ADHD kid you could ever come across, can't sit still, playing with stuff all the time. He's kind and gentle, but crazed. Today he was running around playfully chasing someone...but with a very pointy object in his hand. I had to repremand him. A) no running in my room, and B) how could he run with that sharp thing in his hand? You know they're a good kid when they show rermorse, and Reese looked kind of shocked at his own behavior, as if even hecouldn't believe he'd been acting like that.

Later in the afternoon Reese did something very brave. He's been sitting in our bereavement group for weeks now listening and sharing, but never revealing to the other kids in the group why he's there...something everyone except Reese did at the first session. Today I almost broke down in tears when this kid said, "I'm ready to say why I'm here. I want to tell my story."

In doing so, Reese really opened himself up. Up until this point he hadn't even spoken of the event to me. I'd heard his relatives tell the story, and my co workers, but when I heard it from his own mouth, I was just frozen. I can't believe such a young kid had to deal with what he's lived. So, yeah, he drives me crazy, and he's failing, and he doesn't pay attention, or shut up, but he's giving, and smart, and sweet, and one of the most incredible children I've ever met. He's an amazing person and I'm so proud of him - and I just had to write about it.