Share this:

[First day of a middle school science class.  DAY NINE waiting at the door to check attendance as you enter and point out your assigned seat.  Andrew approaches.]

DAY NINE:  Name?

ME:  Andrew Phifer.

DAY NINE:  Oh?  Any relation to **** Phifer?

ME:  No.

DAY NINE:  Good.  Then you won’t fail my class.

[Blackout - Andrew's then scene's.]

Ok, so I didn’t black out, but the first interaction resulted in some unnecessary middle school angst.  I later discovered the student DAY NINE was talking about and I can’t say I blame her first day trepidation. 

I enjoyed DAY NINE’S class where we learned many basics of all things science.  It was in her class that I first remember learning and using the Scientific Method.  In an effort to work with the Scientific Method in a fun and interesting way, we watched an episode of “Murder, She Wrote” and had to apply the steps to figure out who the killer was.  Those who know me can imagine how exciting it was to devote classroom time to a hero of mine!  How is Angela Lansbury a hero you ask?  If thwarting a Nazi invasion through a witchcraft correspondence course isn’t heroic on epic proportions, then I don’t know what is (for evidence, please refer to the 1971 Disney classic “Bedknobs and Broomsticks”).  Though I enjoyed that day’s classroom exercise, anyone who did not hypothesize “IF you are friends with Jessica Fletcher, THEN you will die” needed some remedial television history courses.

Hypothesis:  IF I share a part of who I am with DAY NINE, THEN the issue of equality will be a bit more personal to her.

Advertisement