“Have you noticed that the ocean, from the deep sea floor up to the cresting waves, has an uncanny resemblance to our own world?”
“I asked you about Black Tuesday. Please stop staring out the window and…”
“Almost all of the life occurs on the bottom,” I continued, glancing out the window at the pedestrians four stories below. “Yet we all dream of reaching the top, flying through the clouds, through the waves, to success.” I returned my gaze to the blue sky miles above. “Why do the brightest students often have the most trouble staying focused in the classroom?” Ms. O’Rorke asked with genuine curiosity as we met, once again, to discuss how distracted I seemed in class
The inflection in her voice startled me. This wasn't a rhetorical question from a disgruntled instructor, as I’d expected, but a plea for guidance from a teacher who sincerely wanted my help in solving the mystery of inattentive students. After nine years of public school in a struggling district, I was astonished; it seemed rare to find a teacher who went out of her way to learn from her students about how to engage them in their own education.
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“Of course. The whole class heard,” she replied, exasperated, assuming I had once again let my mind wander. This time I was eager to reply.
“I become distracted by the vast amount of air in-between the ground, where I’m standing now, and the faraway clouds. While observing the monumental task of achieving worthwhile goals, I wonder how something as insignificant as Black Tuesday could possibly affect my desire to reach the clouds.”
After thinking for a moment, she finally spoke and gave me the advice I needed to propel myself through every boring lecture and the never-ending worksheet I would have to endure throughout high