see ya on the flip side ...

so ... faith momentarily restored in my profession. last night, hideyo and i went on a date (bringing our grand total up to 5 real dates ... astonishing! or ... MAN, we're ghetto fabulous. i love it.) and ate at this place on california ave in palo alto called "la bodeguita del medio." it's a nice little cuban restaurant, very tasty. i stumbled upon it a few years back because i have a former student that works the kitchen there.

so my student teaching year, to date, remains in my mind, the best teaching year ever. (this being my fourth year in the trenches.) perhaps it was because the learning curve for me was still very steep, or perhaps it was the doe-eyed inspired hopefulness i felt as a fledgling teacher. whatever the case may be, my miscreant class of sheltered us history students maintains a special special place in my heart. not the brightest bulbs on the string, and by no means the most motivated, they were sweet. especially this one kid, h, whom i ADORE for a variety of reasons. he's come SO FAR. i think his dad passed away when he was young. he and his mother illegally crossed the border from mexico and have struggled here for some time. he was heavily involved in gangs (read: bigass sureno tatoos) and could barely keep it together. when he managed to make it to first period, school was a safe place for him. homework was not his strong point, but he was clearly very bright and able. i think h and i had our little defining bonding moment this one day when he was getting suspended for coming to school drunk. (mind you, this was at 8 am in the morning.) and as we sat there outside the ap's office, he just looked at me and said "miss chiu, sometimes, i think it would've been better if i'd never been born." and while boys like him don't cry, he looked at me with huge tears in his eyes. and being the well-versed and seasoned teacher that i am, full of wisdom and good thoughts -- what did i do? i just cried along with him.

and since then, h and i have kept in touch and been buddies. i think he might've gone to the can for a spell, but he managed to graduate from high school on time, and started at community college. he talks about wanting to study economics. and he works full time at this restaurant. and while i find it heinous that he probably gets paid a little more than minimum wage for cooking these amazing dishes the restaurant charges $20 a plate for, they're good to him there. i met his boss once. he was like "is h a good student??? because we give him $50 every time he gets an a!!" i love going to this restaurant, because not only does their food make my mouth do a happy dance, but i get to see h. and sometimes, he'll call me, just to say hi. or leave a message on new year's eve like "happy new year miss chiu! hee hee."

so heeday got to meet h too yesterday. and when i went to say hi, h smiled real big. he has a nice smile. he loves it when people come to see him at his restaurant. and then he sent over a fatty free appetizer, complements of the chef! now i'm not in this profession for the kickbacks by any stretch of the imagination, but it's always special because it h made it. : ) and so heeday and i got fat on croquetas and empanadas, artfully arranged by the chef. it was nice. and very tasty.

and so h is my hope that it's not all doom and gloom in the classroom. who knows which of my kids in the future will flip the switch? if it could happen for h, who has so much hardship and adversity in his life, it could happen for anyone, right?

props, h. you're a gem.