On October 18th, Oregon dad Clint Edwards chaperoned his daughter's kindergarten field trip to a pumpkin patch, an experience that left him "with an incredible respect for people who who work with young children all day." In a now-viral Facebook post on No Idea What I'm Doing: A Daddy Blog, Edwards explained that he was only in charge of looking after five kids, including his daughter, but they "listened about as good as goldfishes." As many of us know, keeping an eye on five kids in an open space is a mission on par with landing on the moon, but Edwards realized teachers do it all day.
"The whole time I was afraid I’d lose one in the corn field, they’d never be found, and ultimately end up as the premise for a Stephen King novel," he wrote. "I was only with the children for about four hours, but ... it felt like an eternity." By the time it was all over, he was desperate for the kind of peace and quiet only a hot bath could afford. "Between the mud at the pumpkin patch, and the smell on the bus that I couldn’t quite identify, but was probably a virus, and that one wild little boy that is either destined to be a groundbreaking artist or an inmate, I ended the afternoon with a long hot soak in the bath, too many cookies, and a handful of Tylenol," he wrote.
By contrast, his daughter's schoolteacher stayed cool and collected throughout the trip, like a true pro. She "successfully orchestrated the children changing their shoes twice," which, as far as Edwards is concerned, means she should be "as respected as any military general." His daughter's teacher also managed to smile throughout the entire process, and there was no shoe left behind! "I’ve said this before, but if my life ever depended on my own children finding their shoes, I’d be dead," he wrote. So for the teacher to pull this off with about 20 five-year-olds "places her on par with Batman."
Edwards ended the post by telling teachers to give themselves a "huge pat on the back" because they are "incredible."
Edwards' homage to educators has received more than 10,000 likes in less than a week, as well as plenty of applause and gratitude from other teachers.
"As a preschool teacher for 13 years now, I truly appreciate your willingness to share your experience with truthfulness!" one Facebook user wrote. "Those of us who do this it is truly a passion we enjoy. We have hard days but in the end we have made an impact on so many little lives and their families!"
After all, while it's certainly important work, being a teacher can be really challenging. So it's always great when parents show up to help out and express their appreciation.
And for more stories about great teachers, check out This Teacher Turned Her Classroom Into Hogwarts and the Photos Are Simply Magical.
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