As a high school English teacher, and speech and debate coach, I interact with hundreds of teenagers on a daily basis. Usually, when I tell people this, they reach out with a sympathetic pat, and look at me with an expression of concern and admiration. This is often followed by some form of sentiment including, “Bless you,” or, “You poor thing.” But the reality of the situation is I really love my job. Not only do I enjoy inspiring students and helping them discover who they are as individuals, but the things these teens do and say are absolutely incredible, and they give me hope for the future.

Some of the most compassionate people I know are teenagers. I have seen teens collect coats for people in need, money for hurricane relief, food and toys for their local community, and cards of encouragement for total strangers.

I have seen teenagers reach out and encourage their classmates, but also students from other schools, students who are their opponents, and they treat them with kindness, respect, and dignity. I have seen teenagers who notice when their teacher is feeling a little down, and they choose to write them a note, give them a gift, or simply say, “Thank you for being my teacher.”

I have seen teenagers create amazing things! Everything from music, to art, to literature, to robotics, and more. Some of the ideas teenagers come up with are incredible! The way they approach life and its problems is so creative. I have no doubt that many of the teenagers I have met in my life are going to make a positive impact on the world.

Of course there are some teenagers that say ridiculous things, make foolish decisions, and complete stupid or even hurtful actions; but the same could be said of some adults as well. I am here to tell you that the majority of the teens I interact with are incredible, kind, hard-working, respectful, responsible, determined, creative, mindful, good people. I am honored to play a miniscule role in helping them to become those people, and I cannot wait to see what the future holds.