No, he was more of a distraction. Tom was a senior that year. I don't know how he got that many credits because he barely made it through his senior year. And it wasn't because he didn't have the ability, he did. Tom just didn't care to show it, at least not very often.
The class that he was in was called "The Block." Two other teachers and I teamed to teach all of the juniors and seniors in the school who didn't fit in "normal" classrooms. I taught the English part of the course. What we did then, we now call Project Based Lessons. My English class was combined with science and social studies to form lessons that are more real world.
The group that Tom worked in was a small group of seniors. They had credits, but no vision for the future. So when Tom entered the room on that first day with full fatigues, shaved head (not usual for the time), and marching to his seat, not only was I stunned, but so were his peers. He arrived at a desk, positioned his foot to turn, and sat down in a snap.
This went on for a few days. Exactly the same each day. And each time he spent the whole class period starting directly at me until the bell signaled to leave. Then, he would snap up, make his turn and march out of the classroom.
Of course, I was curious about him and this routine that Tom had developed, so I asked the other teachers in the block if he was acting the same in their classes. What I found out was that Tom continued the military act in all of his classes, going to lunch, and before and after school. That was when I volunteered to question Tom about his curious actions.
So, the next day before class started, I caught Tom in the hall before he entered my class. That was when I became aware of what a physical specimen he was. Standing before me was a handsome African-American male, five foot eight, and chiseled like he had lifted weights his whole life. I adjusted my question with the evidence before me, "Tom did you join a branch of the military over the summer?" I was pretty proud of that supposition.
He broke character for the first time since I had met him. First came a broad smile. Then he tilted his head and brought a hand to his chin as if he were thinking. He waited and finally smiled even bigger, "Now that would have been a great idea! Maybe next summer!" He then changed his stride to what I would call normal and called out to the class, "I'm back!"
Never did get an answer to the military act, but he changed to other garb as the year continued. The best new antic was the day that he came in with an eggplant. When I asked what he was doing with an eggplant in an English class, he told me that he brought it as a snack to eat in class. Then he promptly took his first bite. He worked on the eggplant for about fifteen minutes. He slowed at that point and raised his hand. I asked what he wanted. He responded, "I'm full, would you like the rest?"
Almost every day of that year, Tom Williams did something that made me smile. He may have been crazy, but he was entertaining! On the final day for seniors, he came in the room with the biggest smile of the year. He simply said, "are you ready?" It was a question that I had become used to. I indicated with a nod that I was. That was when he, from a standing position, did a back handspring, touching the ceiling with his foot. he landed perfectly on both feet. He stepped forward and gave me a hug. Then he laughed really hard as he left the room.
The rumor that I heard over and over for the next few years was that Tom had joined the Marines and that he was on a special mission. If I had any student who was more capable of that, I can't think of who it might be.
No comments:
Post a Comment