Entering the Next Chapter

Motherhood I am a white woman with three daughters.  What do I have to teach them?  I have to teach them to love God. I have to teach them to respect authority. I have to teach them to love themselves. I have to teach them to be kind. I have to teach them to work hard.  I am a white woman with three black daughters. What do I have to teach them?  I have to teach them to love God. I have to teach them to respect authority, because if they don't they can become victims. I have to teach them to love themselves, even when people judge them.  I have to teach them to be kind, even when someone makes ignorant remarks to them. I have to teach them to work hard, harder than others to get the same pay and respect. I also have to teach them how to not live in fear, even when so much injustice is happening to people who look like them.  I am...  I am heartbroken. Heart broken when I see the footage of people being treated so wrong by the people who are supposed to pr

Junior Year 2002-2003: Senora Boulanger’s very presence in the classroom demands attention. She is exuberant. Her energy and love for the Spanish language and culture intrigue me and make me wish I had that kind of passion for learning. She makes learning fun and exciting, but for some reason I can’t retain the information. The only thing she seems to love more than the language and culture is teaching. She is always willing to take her time to speak to her students about class or even their lives. It is my junior year that Senora Boulanger forever changes my life. Walking up to a teacher’s desk usually evokes fear and anxiety. As I step closer I feel as if the walls are closing in on me. But with senora Boulanger it is never like that. She has the room where we all go to during homeroom and talk to her. One time when I am speaking to her I mention that I can’t really read or comprehend. Finding the words is difficult because I don’t really understand why I am so stupid. A