Today is National Teacher Appreciation Day

It's a really important day today, and I don't say that lightly. Today across the nation we celebrate our teachers, who are in classrooms with the next generation of leaders as I write this. It's a topic I'm extremely passionate about: the difference that our teachers make DAILY on today's youth, the long term impact they make on our society, and the work they do for in my opinion--far too little pay.

Growing up, I was never a straight-a student. I considered myself "smart" and was often in advanced classes--but I was the kind of getting B's.  Probably because I always felt like I knew enough to do well and wasn't obsessed with getting A's. Call me crazy... But education was a huge part of my upbringing. I went to St. Paul's School right here in Nampa for a large chunk of my life-- preschool through the 8th grade! That's about 10 years of the same school. It's the place I'll always credit for teaching me basic fundamentals of being a good human. I had amazing teachers, a few of them I'm literally STILL in touch with and see regularly. There are countless teachers from Bishop Kelly High School and Gonzaga University that all shaped me in one way or another, too. One college professor, I could not STAND--but at the end of the semester I thanked endlessly for making me a better writing. Just last week I reached out to a former philosophy professor who turned me on to Albert Camus's writing--I loved the book when I was in college. I read it again recently and suddenly the whole books meaning was entirely new. These are lessons that educators--and only educators--can leave imprinted on our lives. The times in my life where an educator made a difference are countless and for that, I'm eternally grateful.

Send a thanks to one of your teachers--past or present today. They work hard to help YOU and will never get enough credit for it. Post up--which teacher made a massive impact on your life?