Teachers need parents too

Posted on 24 March 2011 by LeslieM

The other day, my favorite first grade teacher quoted one of her students to me.

The little one said, “My Momma told me I ‘gotsta’ be good for G-d.” Well, except for the grammatical mistake, I really thought the little one was onto something. The only problem is that I understand that the very day he came out with this quote, he was “off the wall.” If you don’t know what the term, “off the wall” means, just ask a teacher … any teacher.

So, if his momma told him that he ‘gotsta’ be good for
G-d, then why wasn’t he being good? Well, first of all, his momma wasn’t there. But, his Momma didn’t tell him to be good for her. She told him to be good for G-d!

Oddly enough, in the Torah, we find Moses telling The Children of Israel that they ‘gotsta’ be good. But he doesn’t tell them to be good for him. He tells them to be good for
G-d. And, as long as Moses is around to supervise, the people are fairly well behaved and, if not, they are brought before him for some disciplinary action.

While, in our day, Johnny might not be able to read; back in the wilderness, Johnny apparently had trouble with math because the Children of Israel expect Moses to come down from the Mount after a certain number of days. But some of them count wrong and, with Moses not there, they forget that they ‘gotsta’ be good – not for Moses, their teacher, but for G-d. Then, Moses takes a census of the people and each has to put in half a shekel, perhaps a reminder that we should have the wisdom to use at least half the senses G-d gave us.

There are times in our lives when we participate in a census. The government has a census. There are others that are taken to show what the current population of the Jewish People is in the world today. And, no matter how many censuses are done, there always seems to be another census that disagrees or disproves the other one.

We all want to see the data, but we only want to believe the data if it shows what we want it to show. We want to believe that whatever we do is the right thing, and, if someone disagrees with us, they are doing the wrong thing. There are many absolutes in this world. But there are other things that are not so easily discerned. Sometimes, we are not sure which way to go and sometimes we react out of anger.

When Moses was up on Mt. Sinai, some of the people weren’t sure which way to go. Some decided to build a Golden Calf, which wound up being a real Red Herring.  They needed a teacher to step up and take charge, but, whatever teacher they got would not be able to do it on their own. What they really needed was a parent. We need the parents and the grandparents of our children. Without them, the teacher’s chances are cut in half.

So, while you might expect your child’s teacher to be his/her mentor, remember that, as far as your children are concerned, if you want to teach them that they ‘gotsta’ be good for G-d, you had better accept the responsibility of being good and leading them on the right path for His Name’s Sake. And, while you’re at it, don’t forget to bring your child’s teacher an apple and a good dose of honor and respect.

Shalom My Friends,

Rabbi Craig H. Ezring

Rabbi Ezring is a Hospice Chaplain and Member of the National Association of Jewish Chaplains. He also provides Professional Pastoral Care Services to a number of health centers in Broward County.

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