I do not fear being alone...

Recognising your significance...

Sometimes it can be difficult to see any significance in what you do. You work hard, try your best, give it your all. You try to better yourself, learn more, give more. You do it to share your skills, your understandings, your life lessons. Sometimes, however, your reach seems so limited and your efforts worthless. At this point, it becomes harder to see your purpose in this world. I'll always remember a priest who spoke at a Sydney youth festival: "A lot goes into a person." It made me reconsider what my parents wanted for me and some of the conscious choices they made. Each one of us is unique, the product of a myriad of experiences, teachings and interactions. Each one of us has so much to share, but sometimes the opportunity to do so is lacking. 

I've spent a lot of time in my life trying to impress the wrong people. But several years ago, I started to recognise my worth. All those public holidays spent reading to become the best teacher I can be; the many all-nighters spent planning the perfect sequence of lessons when many students these days simply don't care; the intricate feedback comments that are barely read by students or their parents. Ultimately, however, all of this time and effort hasn't amounted to nothing. The product is a teacher who thinks critically and who has something of worth to share with her students. I have been very fortunate to receive fantastic feedback in recent years from parents whose children I tutor. My teaching is being witnessed in their homes, its merits evaluated. In schools, limits are set on what I am able to contribute, but outside of that context, the sky is the limit. - Mel