Resuscitation

I don’t presume to know what this bald eagle is thinking, but I’d venture that he’s eyeing up a tasty fish. Though they were at one point added to the endangered species list for most parts of the US, we have quite a few bald eagles here in Western Wisconsin. They’re on the road to recovery.

Yesterday in class, I was talking with a student who has been through a lot: a difficult childhood, poverty, divorce, etc. She decided to embark on her technical college journey for a degree in accounting despite being a nontraditional student and having many qualms about her own abilities. I could practically hear her wringing hands after she passed me her narrative draft for feedback. The first “big essay” assignment.

Were there issues? Yes. Was it horrible? No. I pointed out some areas she could work on regarding structure and details, but she was on the right track.

She was pleasantly shocked. Her essays in previous English classes had always been coated in red ink, leaving her to completely doubt her ability in any writing class. I showed her what was working well already, and how to build off of that. She returned to her draft with newfound confidence, filling two or three more notebook pages. I have no doubt she’ll do just fine in our class.

I’ve been teaching for over ten years now, and I’m starting to accumulate a bucket load of anecdotes like these. Sometimes I forget that I have some from my own life. Three years ago this week, I was wrapping up my second round of chemo and certain that my days were numbered. Certainly, I was a lone bald eagle and an uncertain student, but I’m still here today and less bald– bonus!

One of the amazing and beautiful things that I get to experience as a teacher is that every year is a fresh start. This is true of every semester now that I’m in the college realm full time. Every student brings their own story to the classroom, and I get to play a role in helping to further that story (metaphorically, and maybe even literally, depending on which story we’re talking). Many of them have their baggage when it comes to English classes, or writing more specifically, or interacting with people more generally. (I mean, who doesn’t have some weird social baggage post-Covid, if we’re being honest?)

The first day, everyone is sitting on their own, looking nervous, wondering what sorts of icebreakers we’ll do and how annoying I’m going to be. Three weeks in, students are exchanging social media info, swapping plans for the weekend, and feeling confident about their writing and themselves. I get to be a part of that, and it makes me so grateful. I think we all need a little fresh start from time to time, and we all need a little grace. Choosing to build an encouraging atmosphere isn’t going to be something that I regret as a teacher, but endangering someone’s fresh start is. So I’m cheering for those sometimes strange, slightly battle-hardened bald eagles.