Published at Rudolf's Diner, December 2003

In sixth grade my class had a student teacher who had pitched a couple of years for the Cleveland Indians. He and our teacher didn't tell us until his last day because they didn't want that information to interfere with our learning. I think we could've handled it, though. We could've got beyond that soon enough, and would've taken great pleasure in knowing this about our temporary teacher.

Recently I have reconnected with three of my old students that I had from grades 4-6, all of whom are now around 20 and in college. There are things they've said and ways that they talk to me that tell me pretty clearly that the period of time during which I was their teacher is one they remember fondly, and that some of the things that they learned then they've generalized to their current academic and everyday lives. Knowing this brings to me great joy, pride, and reassurance.

One student who I hadn't seen in seven or eight years is now a student at UC Berkeley, where I now work. I had just come out of one of our offices into the hallway where students are often waiting for a class to begin in a neighboring classroom, and I heard a voice behind me say as I started walking down the hall, "Mr. Ashley?" I turned, looked her in the face, and knew her name right away. After catching up a bit I asked her how she recognized me in that moment, and she said, "You still walk the same." I liked that.

I remember many teachers. Some names are a little fuzzy now. Junior High is a bit of a blur; we'd just moved and I had no friends with whom to transition from elementary school to the new world of lockers, class periods, and changing for P.E. But I can close my eyes and move into and through every classroom. I can see the room from where I sat. In most cases I know the light, the desks, the bodies. In just a few I remember the room and some very vague movement. In almost every case, however, I recall teachers who were professional, prepared, and caring. My memories of some teachers are very clear, even though the memory may be based on only a single thing he or she said, or a single success I had.

I feel a real gratitude for these people. Sometimes I calculate the years and wonder how many are still alive. I do regularly think of many of these individuals. These nine drawings above are just a small tribute to some teachers that I was fortunate to have (and in one case, work with), and whom I particularly remember.