My Heartfelt Appreciation For A Teacher

Post date: May 5, 2014 9:54:15 PM

You know how one person can change the course of your life. You don’t know it then but years later, when you reflect upon your life, you realize these things and you see them from a different point of view. For me it was my 3^rd grade teacher in math at Jose Abad Santos Memorial School(JASMS). It was the early 80’s. I was so young then and it was so long ago that I can’t even remember her complete name. I had to ask my aunt who was a teacher in the same school back then and is now an administrator there. My teacher’s name is Ms. Carolina Fallarme. She was a simple teacher as I recall. She did not do anything fancy or special yet she made a huge impact on my life.

Back then, I was just starting my 2^nd year of going to school at JASMS. During my 2^nd Grade, I hang out with the wrong crowd that I got in trouble a lot. I even had to stand on each and every post of the campus as punishment as I recall. Sometimes I think my aunt was the only reason I got to stay in that private school for another year. Then, came 3^rd Grade math with Ms. Fallarme. I recall her challenging everyone in class to finish our workbook by December. Those who can do so can move on to an advanced workbook. So, I did. By January, there were just 2 of us who qualified to do the advance work. Now, what made that special was not the reward (and recognition) that I got. It was the fact that she gave me a lesson in life that I carry to this day - she taught me to setting a goal and go for it. She started me on the path of dreaming and goal-setting that has helped me get to where I am today and will lead me to where I want to be in the future.

Today, I try to follow the same path Ms. Fallarme has taken. I am a teacher myself. I try to teach with passion. I try to touch my students’ hearts, especially the rudest and most ungrateful of them. I try to build relationships with them in the hope that they may realize that there are greater things in store for them if they only start hoping, believing and dreaming again. I’m closing in on 20 years in education. I have taught the minds, touch the hearts, and transformed the lives of countless young men and women, some of them are my closest friends now who are leading successful careers. As much as my students have thanked and appreciated me for what I have done for them, none of this would even be possible if it were not for Ms. Fallarme. My only regret is that I have not been able to thank her personally for what she means to me. I have spent years trying to get in touch with her again to no avail. I have not given up though. I still keep on trying. I don't know if I will every be able to express my deepest appreciation for what she has meant to me. So, in the silence of my heart, I just lift up a prayer for her an thank God everyday for allowing our lives to cross paths and bring meaning to my life.

Ms. Carolina Fallarme,

wherever you may be,

in behalf of all the lives I have touched,

we appreciate you!