Passion

Passion is important no matter what job you do. If you don't like what you do it shows in lack of productivity and lack of motivation. If you do like what you do, it makes your life (and the lives of those around you) so much better. My favorite example of this is a janitor for my middle school named Dwayne.
Dwayne was in his 40's or 50's when I was a student at Bettendorf Middle School. He was always seen with a smile on his face and a kind word on his lips. Even though he was dirty with ratty, long hair and missing teeth, everyone liked Dwayne. I was on the newspaper staff at the time and I decided to do an article on Dwayne. The teacher that oversaw the newspaper drove me and two other kids to Dwayne's house on a farm an hour away. His farm was as unkempt as his own appearance but his gentle personality showed as llamas, kittens, and an assortment of other farm animals let him pet them and returned the affection. Dwayne loved being around kids and everyone knew it and loved him for it. I moved on and went to high school and every football game when the marching band would go out to march, Dwayne would be hanging on the chain-link fence cheering us on. I graduated and returned to Bettendorf last fall break to go to a haunted house with some friends. Oddly enough, I ran into Dwayne there, waiting in line in front of us. He remembered all of our names, even though it had been 5 years since we were in middle school. Dwayne was passionate about being with kids, even though his job may not have been considered a respectable vocation. I remember Dwayne, a janitor, a lot better than I remember most of my middle school teachers.
Passion is so important. It was the passion of my high school spanish teacher that inspired me to become a spanish teacher. I want kids to have the best experience with spanish that they possibly can, even if they decide they don't like it. I hope my passion for the language is contagious and I hope that I am able to retain that passion as time goes on. Just like any friendship or relationship, it's sometimes necessary to change in order to spice things up. I think teaching will be similar and I'll need to change up some activities or ways of doing things so the students and I don't get bored.