The Victors

I have a composition student who has a lot of potential, but has had trouble launching in various ways (I won’t give details), to the point that it’s clearly been frustrating for her, and I had basically written her off despite seeing a lot of potential.

She came in this week having accomplished more in a week than she usually does in a month—absolutely crushing the project she was working on against a deadline that I really did not expect her to be able to make. It was obviously a kind of quantum leap for her, and she was clearly extremely proud of herself and optimistic that she had turned a corner.

That’s such a tremendously satisfying moment as a teacher. I am old, but this kind of interaction never will be.