Frustration, teaching, donuts, friends

I can hear the voices of some 2 dozen people behind me. I can smell coffee and burnt toast. I am sitting on a fairly uncomfortable chair. I am in the Palm Beach Community College's cafeteria/student center. There is the ubiquitous cafeteria and a new Dunkin' Donut counter. (Guess where most people buy food?) Nathan treated me to breakfast this morning. I had two cake donuts and a medium hot chocolate (combo 1) and a milk. Nathan bought a coffee roll (a large glazed donut with cinnamon throughout) which he at most of. He also purchased a medium hot chocolate and breakfast egg-and-cheese-and-sausage-on-a-slightly-squashed-croussant. Neither of which he ate. A good lesson to remember next time he has to spend his own money on food. Since living in Argentina, I have ceased to look at how much food cost. There, if you could find something you wanted, you bought all that they had. There was no way to know how many months (or years) would pass before they were able to import more of the same. Foods like cheddar cheese, saltine crackers, cranberry juice, good granola bars (and sometimes even root beer)--I horded all that I could find. I still find myself buying four instead of one--gallons when I need cups--a case when I need a can. I suppose it is like the body's response when it finds itself in starvation mode--save all that you can, expend as little as possible. We are learning about diets and body training right now in Health. Nate needs it for his GE requirements and I'm in there to take notes. The professor is a former college gymnast, coach and personal trainer who is probably my age (about 50) who possesses a singularly dry sense of humor. He names our class his favorite--and the kids are starting to open up in response to his 1/2 teasing 1/2 serious presentations. He is overly careful not to preach about whether people should eat empty calories, take steroids, or get inoculated for the HPV. Especially he wishes that they would stop smoking--but he couches his warnings of the its effects in phrases like "I'm not telling you to stop smoking, BUT those who do reduce their risk of heart attack by 25% (or whatever the number is)." I have come to appreciate his precarious position--official spokesman for PBCC and bound by its policy of "non-interferience" in the lives of his students. But, as a teacher, isn't he suppose to be an influence on them? It seems that this idea is the essence of what it means to teach. All of my life, I have dreamed of changing those around me--even those who never knew me--for the better by the things I do. My children constantly affirm that I have been a good mother and am a good friend--which pleases me in ways I cannot express. I would hope that those who pass through the classes that I teach and who read the things that I write would also come away with more insite into themselves, more curiousity about the world around them, more compassion for those around them. I would always want to be a good teacher.

Mike: These are the photos that I had on my hard drive. I'll be scanning and posting more as I find them. Thank you for taking on this project for Libby and Dallan. I know that they will both really love it.
The picture of Brent, Nate and Dallan was taken in 2006 (?) in Topeka, KS. The others are at Meg (Columbus, OH) and La (Provo, UT)'s weddings in 2006.