Les Enfants

One of my students’ favorite things is to greet me when I walk through the hall. As I walk through the halls I am bombarded with shouts of “hello” and “how are you?” from my students. At first it was very flattering. Then it became annoying and now I just expect it. I usually give the standard, programmed response, but the other day I was caught off guard. There was a group of 13 year olds standing outside the classroom waiting to go in. I passed them on my way to the staff room. One of them said, “Hello Katherine,” and I turned and said, “Hi,” in return. I walked two more steps and heard another student in a high-pitched voice say, “Hiyyaaa,” clearly mocking my accent. I turned back, they giggled and that was that.

Later that night over a few drinks my friends and I were complaining about how hard it is to be a teacher, a recreational activity that happens quite frequently, especially if someone has a good story. I shared my story of how a 13 year old French student had mocked my English. “She can laugh when I speak French, but not when I speak English. I am a native English speaker!” I exclaimed. “She’s supposed to look up to me. I’m supposed to be cool!” We had a good chuckle and a shocking realization. “They’re 13, they think 18 year olds are cool,” Lee Anne says, “We’re too old to be cool.”

We took a few silent moments to reflect on this. Could this be possible? Am I too old to be cool? I feel pretty cool. Eh, what does a 13 year old from Hagondange know about cool anyway? Cool or not cool, I had a great evening with good friends.