"Student of the Month," the headline read.
This kid, let's call him Jack, isn't the brainest kid in the fifth grade -- or the school. You won't find his name on the honor roll, but he gives more than most kids born with so much more in their reserves. The text of the newsletter said it perfectly:
Jack has a heart of gold and a lot of integrity. He enjoys school and always arrives with a smile for everyone he sees. I love to hear him read because he brings such expression to the words. He perseveres through many frustrations and never complains -- a true inspiration to staff and students alike.
I worked with Jack so much last year, trying to help him focus and remember what he'd read only seconds ago. How I wished that things would come easier for him, that someday everything would click. The lights on and bright. But the times when he would arrive at an answer and I could slap him a high five in acknowledgment of his accomplishments -- that was everything.
My friend, Dawn, his teacher, nominated Jack for the honor, in part to boost his confidence. "I see naturally talented kids who squander what they have," I told her during lunch later that day. "Where would this kid be if he had more to start with?"
"He'd be on the honor roll," she said.
Usually, the "student of the month" is an honor roll student, a boy or girl who gets a lot of A's. That's good because those students work hard for what they get and they deserve the recognition they receive. But it's nice to see the Jacks of this world receive an accolade too once in awhile.
A slight salty drop descended, dampening the paper. The kind of the thing likely to happen if I read certain things for too long. I shifted gears to look as if I were strictly cleaning my glasses and I clasped that newsletter into my hand, removing all evidence, and taking it up as if it were any number of papers and books I can be seen carting around in the day.
As far as anyone in this institution is concerned, Mr. Guy is a tough taskmaster, the type who will cut to the quick any nonsense spotted from little sweathogs-in-training.
The truth, though, is that I've always harbored a soft spot for the Jacks of this world. When I saw he'd received that "student of the month" honor, I felt a happiness rush through like I hadn't experienced since my son Max received a citizenship award at his own school two years ago. For the kid out there who doesn't make it every time, yet keeps pressing forward, never losing that genuine goodness so much a part of his character -- well, I'm pulling for him. Or her.
For Jack.
