Teacher Man

I’ve finally finished reading  Teacher Man, just in time for the official start of Lent tomorrow which is Ash Wednesday.  I’d like to set aside reading books that are not spiritual in nature, at least through the whole days of Lent, a simple act of self-denial and sacrifice.

Have you ever heard of Frank McCourt? He was the author of the more popular  bestsellers Angela’s Ashes and ‘Tis both memoirs which he wrote earlier. Teacher Man is his third book.  I was lucky enough to buy a hardbound copy a few weeks ago in one of my forays at Booksale. He told  his story as a high school teacher for thirty years in New York  City, the travails he encountered as a first time teacher who was supposed to teach English but ended up telling stories about his childhood and his past life, finding himself yearning for his students’ respect. He was frequently in trouble with school administrators because he didn’t want to follow the school curriculum but he ended up as the best-loved  teacher in his school. I like the simple quality of his writing. He made me laugh, he made me smile but he made me cry when I was reading his first two books.

I remember my father who gave me a hint  that he wanted me to be a teacher when I was still starting in college.  But I didn’t want to be a teacher, back then, I had so little patience. I just wanted to write and make research so I majored in Economics –  lot of analysis, a little of Math, more on Statistics, lots of feasibility studies and remembering the Law of Supply and Demand by heart.  Once you become a parent, teaching is a done deal. I mean, from dawn to  sundown, you are a teacher, a playmate and best friend to your children. And you never stop learning too  about life .  Everyday of your existence, there is something you learn, you become the eager student  and struggle to be the best teacher to your kids.

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