This is a question I ask all my students. After all, if you don't know where you're going, how can you get there?

     I'm supposed to teach them English and reading.  However, that can come only after they decide they need those subjects!  So I constantly weave big questions into my lessons.  The answers range from jaw-dropping pathetic to inspiring.

   Here are some true examples out of my world:

("What do you plan to do after graduation?")

"Oh, you know, just chill. Maybe smoke a little."

 

("What do you plan to do after graduation?")

"I really don't want to do anything."

(Be a housewife? A mom?  Do nails?  Style hair?)

"No, I'm really not planning to do anything."

 

("What do you plan to do after graduation?")

"Next time you see me, I'll have a baby in my belly."

"Do you have a husband?"

"No."

"A boyfriend?"

"No."

"Then how is this going to happen?"

"I just really, really want to be a mother."

I hope for her future childrens' sake that she stalls this until she figures out how to pay for their diapers.

("What do you plan to do after graduation?")

"I want to be a pediatrician."

"I want to be a nurse." 


"I hope to go to art school and get into computer animation."

If they have some kind of ambition, at least I can urge them to turn in their science homework and spruce up their English skills.


("What do you plan to do after graduation?")

"More than anything in this world, I want to have a happy family...someone who loves me, someone I can take care of."

("What do you plan to do after graduation?")


"I'd really really like to have nice things.  That might not sound right, but I'd like to help my mom get a nice house.  It's not just for me, it's for her."

I sure want to help that kind of student grasp for the dream.



Many kids haven't had a lot of choice about where they grew up and where they've landed.  Some are even victims of vile misuse. I try hard to instill hope and optimism in them. .And I pray for them, yes I do, regardless of their beliefs.  Will it make a difference?  I hope so.    If my husband hadn't come along and told me he was going to show me Texas, I'd probably still be in PA, working part time at the Riverside Deli.