Teachers are Gifts

Ronit and Jamil has brought me so many gifts. First of all, writing it was a labor of love. It is poetry, and poetry defines me. Secondly, I feel its diction is so lovely and that, too, helps to define me; I am in love with language. But finally, it has afforded me the opportunity to go to many wonderful public schools throughout NYC. And what I have had the opportunity to observe is there are many amazing teachers who daily give 200 percent to their students. So many of these students have received great gifts from their teachers: a love of learning and a belief in oneself. I am thinking, for example, of Debra Newman from P.S. 368 Star Academy in Brooklyn. She teaches at a lock down school, where many of the students are suffering from emotional problems. So what does she do? She purchases books for her students, has me come in and each and every one of her students not only read the book, but had questions to ask. This woman is remarkable. And what makes her more interesting is she was a public prosecutor in Brooklyn for thirty years, and decided to switch careers where she could really help people. Certainly, no one is helping the children more than she is, and there are many Debra Newman's in these schools I have gone to, in mostly under-served communities. The students are blessed, and so I am to be a witness to this.