Saturday, June 29, 2013

A Realization.

I recently came across this quote from a man named Gordon B. Hinckley. While I do not condone everything that this man believed, I find a lot of truth in this statement:
“Generally speaking, the most miserable people I know are those who are obsessed with themselves; the happiest people I know are those who lose themselves in the service of others…By and large, I have come to see that if we complain about life, it is because we are thinking only of ourselves.” 
I was thinking about this quote earlier, when it hit me: this is why I want to be a teacher.

It started out with me thinking about all the times I've been unhappy with my life versus all the times I have been content. It was completely true: those times when I was feeling discouraged, sad, or unloved were times when I was focusing only on my own life and my problems. The times when I have been most happy have been times when I have focused on pouring into other people's lives.

I realized that, at least for me, I don't need to have everything I want in order to be happy. If I put my energy into thinking of other people, helping them however I can, and being happy for them, I forget to set aside time for worrying about my problems. I realized that I can be fully content by simply making a difference in someone else's life.

And that is why I want to be a teacher.

 This will be me, only with brown hair and probably not as nice of a classroom.

I could never really explain why I wanted to teach. I would always say it's because I love little kids, but I always knew there was something more than that. Now I understand: I want to get to know these future students of mine. I want to help them learn. I want to show them that they can be successful. I want to make a difference in their lives.

Everyone remembers their teachers. In my opinion, a teacher is probably one of the most influential professions there is. I'd even argue that they are more influential than motivational speakers.

When I was in junior high and even parts of high school, I thought I hated people. I honestly don't know why I thought that, but clearly I did not know myself. Because the truth is, I love people.

I have a love for people (specifically, children) and I want to use that love to help, to mentor, and to inspire. I want to pour all my time and energy into the lives of children so that they may see that they can accomplish something great. I want to teach. Because I know that even when times get stressful and hard and I just want to quit, one child's success will be enough to keep me going.

It may not pay a lot, but what is money compared to the genuine happiness that comes from serving others?
"No one can serve two masters, for either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and money." Matthew 6:24
I don't need to worry about my problems because I know the Lord will take care of them. Happiness does not come from material possessions, but from the Lord and doing His work.

And that is why I want to be a teacher.

1 comment:

  1. I want to be a teacher too, for many of the same reasons you listed here. I just want to make a positive impact on their lives, especially as I increasingly see young children who have very poor home lives. It's sad really. I hope I can be one bright spot in their lives.

    ReplyDelete

Thanks for commenting! I always love hearing your thoughts. :-)