Wednesday, 4 May 2016

There are Teachers and then there are Educators.

Poppy Glory.

Do you remember when the girls in your classroom, or you yourself, began to consider wearing make-up. I remember it very clearly, not because it increased my interest in girls, but because of the turmoil it caused. When I went to school there were very strict rules about such matters.  Skirts had to be a certain length, we even had a teacher who kept a tape in her drawer to make sure this was adhered to. Jewellery  was frowned upon, the exception being if it was a religious symbol. Being from a non religious family I unlike my classmates found this difficult. My friends were quite happy to wear a cross around their necks.The girls tried to be discreet about lipstick and such but frequently they would be sent to the toilets to wash off lipstick.
There is the  story of the headteacher who was faced with a real problem in his school made much more difficult by the practice of some of the younger girls in the school. 
Every night the janitor would remove them, and the next day the girls would put them back.
Finally the headteacher decided that something had to be done. He called all the girls to the bathroom and met them there with the janitor. He explained that all these lip prints were causing a major problem for the janitor and school cleaners who had to clean the mirrors every night (you can just imagine the yawns from the little princesses).
To demonstrate how difficult it had been to clean the mirrors, she asked the janitor to show the girls how much effort was required.
He took out a long-handled squeegee - dipped it in the toilet - and cleaned the mirror with it.
After that, there were no lip prints on the mirror.
There are teachers, and then there are educators.

Sometimes the educators are very close to us as little Johnny most certainly knew. 
He was  first day at school in Alabama,  and he'd been told by his mum to listen to the teacher and do exactly as he was told.
The teacher told the class that at the beginning of each day they would start with the pledge of allegiance. She instructed her new charges to put their right hand over their hearts and repeat after her, "I pledge allegiance to the flag..."
Looking around she noticed little Johnny with his hand over the right cheek of his bottom. She got rather cross with him and told him she would not continue until he put his hand over his HEART!
Little Johnny started crying and wailed. "But it is over my heart. I know it is because when Grandma comes to visit us, she pats me here," indicating his bottom, "and then she always says "Bless your little heart, Johnny" and my grandma goes to church every Sunday and she sure wouldn't lie!"
So you never know just where you will meet your next educator. Have a good day. 

1 comment:

  1. Loved both of these stories, Ralph ❤️ Thank you for your great stories