Three reasons why teachers should only have TEACHER friends.

Hello teacher friends... and enemies (you know who you are).  Summer has officially begun and we are dead smack in the middle of our golden month: July.  Why is July the golden month for the teacher?  Well in June we are winding down getting ready for July, our month of freedom, and in August we are gearing up for the school year.  Yes, some overachieving teachers will say they spend their entire six weeks off prepping for the upcoming school year.  I applaud those hard, dedicated, soon to be burned out souls. These hardworking souls are the forgotten, the lost, the people who other people outside of the world of Education deem a myth because people always,without provocation, will say: "It must be nice to be a teacher and have the summer off, I wish my job allowed me to do this."


__________________________RECORD SCRATCH----------------------------WHAT???????

How many times must an Educator debunk this myth of this supposed "free time?" 

Okay, I will admit this, teachers do get, maybe, a little extra breathing room in our profession than other people who are desk jockeys, ooopps, did I actually type that? 

You see, as Educators, we PAY DEARLY for the precious time off that you, yeah you, non Educators, seem to think we get as a perk of being the lowest of low on the professional totem pole. 

This is why no one can understand a teacher, like a teacher.  There are factions within this strange fraternity called Education as well.  

For you see, no one gets a teacher, like a teacher. No one gets an Administrator, like an Administrator.  No one gets an Instructional Aide, Classified office support staff, custodian, etc... like another.  Seems logical, right? 

Well here are three reasons to validate the topic at hand. 

Teachers, after reading this, it is your choice as to whether or not you want to cut off your  non Educator associates.  For I am not responsible for any broken friendships, marriages, or severance of ties. 

1. If all of your friends were teachers, you would NEVER have to explain your break: 

Need I say more?  I mean seriously.  When you say things like "God, let me make it to December 13th, and I will be okay", you don't have to unpack that statement.  You don't have to justify why at this point in the school year, some children, and adults, are simply getting on your nerves.  No, it doesn't mean you're unhappy with your profession.  No, it doesn't mean that you hate children.  All it means is that you're tired.  I mean like they act as if you don't leave work until 6 p.m. but arrive at 6:30 a.m. You are tired.  Tired like you were up all night grading papers or writing evaluations.  Tired like you have to go to a football game, parent night, and board meeting this week... SO, GET OFF OUR BACKS you judgemental non Educators.  

2. If all of your friends were teachers, you would have daytime fun buddies during the golden month of July:

July, this is the month of rebuilding, rejuvenation, FREE TIME, for the teacher.  Some of us teachers have our own children... So instead of happy hour like you regular 12 month employees, teachers have to make the best of the free DAYtime we have (assuming your little ones are in preschool.)  As Educators, we certainly understand the dedication to your job, but yes, I really am going to the beach tomorrow and its Wednesday.  Thursday, maybe I'll catch a movie.  Friday, a little shopping, late lunch, maybe a casual stroll... then enjoy the time I have left to relax.  Does it suck that, usually, teachers do this alone, ABSOLUTELY!  Does it suck that we get this short window of time to do these things, NO!  You see the beach, we couldn't go to the beach during our non break time because we were too busy grading papers.  The movies, HA!  The summer time is the ONLY time as Educators we can burn two plus hours of our day and not let a ball drop somewhere else in our lives.  Casual strolls, a late lunch, you know all the stuff you non Educators get to do anytime, relatively, not during the summer months? Yeah, let us have our fun. This bragging that you seem to think we are doing will end soon, believe us.  Then you'll resume your bragging rights about a concert on Thursday evening when we were on campus at parent teacher night.  

3. If all of your friends were teachers, you would not have to explain all the collateral duties that come with the profession: 

Before I elaborate, let me define what the term, often used in the military, "collateral duty" means: 

 What is a collateral duty? 

 Work assigned on a temporary basis by appointment 

 A minor duty (performed 20% or less of the time)

 Work that is periodically rotated among employees  

In other words, the unwritten rule of extra work makes you a team player.  

Here is the truth of the matter, if you're an Educator, there are "other duties as assigned". This language can be found in your contract.  You will have to report to some type of morning, lunch, after school, or sport supervision duty.  You will have to attend garden variety meetings, set aside time to speak with parents (if you're an effective Educator), and have impromptu parking lot meetings with ANYONE.  Sometimes the ONLY, and I mean ONLY,  person who will understand WHY you can't meet up this evening, or spend more time with them is another Educator.  Here's a harsh reality: the field of Education used to be pretty secure. In the past teachers were highly sought, easily employed, and able to secure longevity within a school district.   Those days are over.  More and more the field of Education is paralleling the politics of our business world counterparts.  The earliest to arrive, the latest to leave, the one who shows up to every meeting, the one who assists the superiors, these people are the ones who are ensuring that they will be a viable candidate for a promotion. Additionally, these people are ensuring that if the decision to reduce  staff arrives, they will not considered for the chopping block because they've made themselves too valuable.  Only a teacher gets that.  Sad reality, but its true.  No explanation needed (unless you have slacker Educator friends).  

It feels nice to have someone understand. 

Teachers, do you feel the same?  Please feel free to comment below.