Lovable and sometimes intimidating figures, our teachers can present us with important life opportunities, inspire us to discover our vocation, and motivate and guide us along the way.

Some days we love them, other days we hate them for expecting too much from us. A teacher’s true appreciation comes with age. Too few of us understand a teacher’s value and effort while we are still students. We want to spend our time having fun, not doing tons of homework. We don’t realize yet that being good at something takes practice, but our teachers do. It is when we mature that we truly admire these people and begin to recognize the positive difference they made in our lives. There comes a point where we start being thankful to all our teachers, good or bad, but the most memorable ones will always be the ones who believed in us when we didn’t believe in ourselves.