A doctor. A farmer. A mommy. A biomedical engineer. Those were the typical answers I gave as a young child when asked the common question, “what do you want to be when you grow up?”

Throughout my childhood, I spent many hours playing with my big sister, Nikki. One of our favorite things to play was school. We had a full set of classroom supplies complete with markerboards, calendars, weather charts, and textbooks. We would take turns teaching our American Girls their lessons. Being the teacher was an important job, you had to take attendance, grade papers, and read stories. I had a lot of fun playing teacher, but up until a few years ago I never considered teaching to be in my future.

The August before my sophomore year of high school, an instagram famous educator, Kayla Delzer, came to Park Rapids to speak to the school’s staff. Nikki was invited and asked me to come along. I soaked up all the details and left the auditorium feeling inspired. One thing Kayla said that stuck with me was, “Everyone’s a teacher. Everyone’s a learner.” This quote made me think about what a teacher truly is.

The Cambridge English Dictionary defines teacher as, “someone whose job is to teach in a school or college.” I used to believe that a teacher is exactly what the dictionary definition implies.

I believed that a teacher was the person who stood at the front of the classroom and taught the difference between plant and animal cells. I now realize that a teacher is not just a person who stands at the front of a classroom. A teacher is more than that.  A teacher is someone or something that teaches you. A teacher can be a person, an object, or even an experience. The information you learn from each teacher varies; some teach facts while others teach life lessons. Over my seventeen years of life I have had countless teachers, but only fifty of them have fit the dictionary’s definition of a teacher.

The teachers that fit the dictionary definition, meaning my school teachers, have played an important role in my life. Without them I wouldn’t be able to do the pythagorean theorem or write a five page research paper. I wouldn’t know some of the basic information needed to succeed, but more importantly without them I wouldn’t be who I am today. My teachers have instilled a sense of confidence in me, they have made me feel proud of my abilities. I can’t imagine what I would be like without them.

Some of my biggest teachers, aside from my school teachers, have been my family. My parents have taught me that hard work can take you anywhere. My sister has taught me that I should be myself and forge my own path. My younger cousins have shown me that life is more fun when you take the time to be silly. Each member of my family has taught me something different, but my family as a whole has taught me one  important thing; your love and support is the best thing you can offer someone.

This past year, I was offered a great deal of love and support, from some little six year olds and their teacher. Those six year olds were part of a kindergarten class that I was lucky enough to spend time with. I learned a lot during my time spent in kindergarten, but there is one lesson I learned that will stick with me forever. There was one little girl in the class who would run to me and give me a hug everyday as I walked through door. One day, in April, she was extremely excited to see me; as soon as I walked in, she ran to me and said, “Miss Katie, look! My mom let me wear flip flops to school today!” I looked down at her feet and noticed that she was wearing dirty pink flip flops that were so large they looked like they belonged to her mother. Despite her shoes being dirty and too big, she was thrilled. I told her that I loved her shoes, and she went off to continue playing. Later that day, I noticed that same little girl picking crumbs off the floor and putting them in her mouth. My heart immediately broke, how could such an innocent little girl be so worried about food that she eats crumbs off of the floor?

That same day, after school, I looked at my phone to find that my daily quote read, “Be a rainbow in someone else’s cloud.”(Angelou) I smiled upon reading the quote, but didn’t think much of it until I got home and opened a Dove chocolate to find the same exact quote. At first I was a little creeped out, then I thought maybe the quote appearing twice in one day was trying to tell me something. I began to think about my day; I realized that the little kindergartner was the rainbow in my cloud. She was there to brighten all of my darkest days with her huge smile and tight hugs. Both the Dove chocolate and the little girl taught me two important lessons that day. One being that you should always strive to brighten other people’s days, and the other is that your circumstances shouldn’t determine your happiness.

Objects and people are both great teachers, but often times experience can be an even better teacher.  Going through injuries has been an experience that has taught me some important lessons. The many doctor and physical therapy appointments have taught me to be patient with the process, as some things take time. Being injured has taught me a great deal about empathy, as I can relate to other people’s struggles. One of the most important lessons my injuries have taught me is that you should never take anything for granted. One day you may be able to run and skip, but the next day you may not even have the ability to walk.

When I was younger, I didn’t think I wanted to be a teacher. I didn’t want to be a person who stood in front of the classroom and handed out assignments and tests. Now that I realize what a teacher is, I want to be one. I want to be the kind of teacher that fits the dictionary definition of a teacher. But, I also want to be more of a teacher than that. I want to be the kind of teacher who teaches lessons without realizing it. I want to be the kind of teacher who teaches people what it feels like to be loved and cared for. I not only want to teach facts about the world, but facts about life. I want to teach everyone there is more to life than what is found in textbooks. I want to be the kind of teacher whose teachings aren’t confined within the walls of a classroom.

In my life, I have realized teachers are like superheroes. You don’t always notice them, but they are always there to help make you more successful. My hope is to someday, be a superhero!