I wish I could persuade every teacher to be proud of his occupation – not conceited or pompous, but proud. People who introduce themselves with shame remark that they are, just teachers, gives me despair in my heart. Did you ever hear a lawyer say depreciatingly that he was only a patent attorney? Did you ever hear a physician say I am just a brain surgeon? I beg of you to stop apologizing for being a member of the most important profession in the world. Draw yourself up to your full height, look at anybody squarely in the eye and say, I am a Teacher. ~ William Garr
HOW DO teachers take pride and dignity in the nobility of teaching as profession? Can we say that we are proud and grateful because we are teachers? For me this is the point of William. We who are teachers must have a high outlook and regard for the teaching profession. Like William Garr, I cannot understand why some teachers tend to give a degrading impression when they are introducing themselves as “just teacher” or in Filipino “teacher lang po” It seems that from this expression being a teacher is a shameful profession. Shame to those teachers who tend to underestimate their worth on being teacher. There is nothing to be ashamed of in being a teacher. Not everybody was given the chance to stand in front of a number of pupils to teach. Not everybody was given the chance, to do the most important task in molding the young to be the future hope of the world. It is in this profession, the fate of the entire civilization rest. Therefore, we must ask after realizing our inestimable value what should we do?
We must believe that we are on the noblest profession, the most dignified profession. Believing that our profession was a noble one, we must strive and do our very best to let them know that being a teacher is close to being a hero. Being a teacher is becoming a saint in the process of making other as saints as well.
We should never have regrets with our chosen profession. It won’t help us promote and develop well-rounded individuals. We should be proud being a teacher. We should promote and uphold up no matter what we say and do, no matter where we are that we are teachers. We will always be teachers up to our last breath. Then when the day comes that we will face our last second here on earth, in all profound humility we can say that I was a teacher, I am a teacher and I will always be a teacher! I am a teacher for life!
Julie A. Lavarias
SST I
Doña Asuncion Lee
Integrated School
Division of Mabalacat City
