Although this past year living in Selma has left its mark with many poignant memories, there is one that touched me so deeply that it continually reminds me why I'm here. First a little background: I'm a teacher at a small high school in the country, a school with a 100% black student population and only one other white teacher. These kids didn't know what to do with all my quirkiness at first, but they never judged me because of the color of my skin; instead, they showed a lot of interest in my background, my culture.
This came full circle one December afternoon. I was talking with a student I'll call Sam. Sam is an aspiring rapper and he had often shared his creations with me. This particular afternoon, however, brought an unexpected comment. With a serious look on his face, Sam explained that the day before he'd been listening to one of his favorite CDs. All of a sudden it hit him that the lyrics he'd been quoting for so long were derogatory toward white women. In his words, "When I realized, hey, that's Ms. G they're talking about, I took the CD out and smashed it." He went on to explain that he'd never really known anyone white, but when he met me he started to realize that he'd been making a lot of judgments about a whole group of people. Sam’s life has drastically changed – in more ways than one.
But the deepest change I feel personally is in me. I have grown to love the kids as if we truly were family. The Freedom Foundation is about finding hope. And in bringing hope, I have also greatly received.
Tuesday, June 17, 2008
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
