Public schools in Houston are starting again on August 12th. Wow!
It’s a time when many parents meet their children’s new teachers for the first time, wondering: What qualities will this teacher have? Will they see the light in my child? Will they really care about my child?
If you think back to your own youth, you can probably identify that one teacher who went above and beyond the call of duty. I can recall exactly who that was for me. They may not have been the greatest scholar or the most captivating speaker, but they stood out because they truly cared. And as the saying goes: no one cares how much you know, until they know how much you care.
What does the Torah have to say about the mission of an educator, a teacher, a parent, a rabbi, anyone in a position of influence?
This week we learn about the scenario of an inadvertent killer, someone who accidentally took a life. The law is that such a person must be sent into exile to a designated “city of refuge,” both as a way to atone for the act and to protect them from any relative who might seek vengeance.
Here's the fascinating part: when a student is exiled to the city of refuge, their teacher is obligated to go into exile with them, to continue teaching them and cultivating their growth.
Think about it. This was not the teacher’s “star student.” This was someone who ended up in serious trouble, even if by mistake. Yet the teacher is obligated to join his student in exile and cannot write them off. If they were in your class in the first place, that means they have at least a seed of interest and potential. And if that seed is worked with, cultivated and shaped with genuine care and devotion, it can still flourish.
The message is clear: a true influencer is willing to leave their comfort zone, to step into uncomfortable or even undesirable situations, to ensure that every individual under their care gets the attention they need to reach their full potential. I think back to the teacher who saw the light in me when others did not, and I realize that is what we are all called to be for someone else.