The Empty Desk (2013 Version)

SideNote:  The original contents of this post was printed in the Michigan Chronicle/EduTech section in January 2008.  Only a few words have been omitted to reflect the current times. As always, thank you for reading.---E.M.D

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     There is nothing like Winter Break.  Ask any custodian, student, school secretary, lunch coordinator, SSA, parent volunteer, administrator, or teacher and all would unanimously agree that it is a well-deserved vacation.  However, in the midst of staying-up late, sharing good times with family and friends, and of course, sleeping in, it was the Holy Spirit that reminded me of “the empty desk”.

“The empty desk?” I questioned. 

“Yes,” the Holy Spirit responded. “I know you’re having fun down there, but remind them about the empty desk”.

Stopping to think for a minute, it finally hit me, and I began to type.

            In our glossy, fast-paced world, it is easy to forget just how dangerous our society really is.  Now, my father hasn't forgotten this, and he never neglects to remind me of the worst of the worst that the local news has to offer.  Actually, it seems that soon as I decided to become a social butterfly, the stories have became more and more gruesome. This includes the onslaught of stories dealing with children losing their lives before they reach middle school.  Random shootings, kidnappings, physical abuse, and house fires are just some of the events that have taken the lives of the innocent.  While those of us having a desire to “see and be seen” continue to tempt fate every time we make a move, leaving our loved ones to wait by the phone and hope to hear our voices one more time, I can’t help but think about the little girl who never got the chance to learn how to drive, or the young man who will miss the opportunity to have a summer job…or the teacher who will never write another lesson plan for her class.

            As we return to our classrooms and school buildings, there will be empty desks.  Not because of students and staff members who moved away, but because of a world where everyone is fighting to stay alive.  We return to our schools, hearing the whispers about the young and the old who did not return, whether through violence or natural causes, leaving their desks…empty. 

            So whenever you feel that the world of education is getting on your absolute last nerve, just remember the empty desk that might have belonged to your colleague down the hall, or that kid with the cutest smile that hardly did any work and talked too much.  Remember them, dry your tears and work harder than ever before, appreciating every moment you are able to sit at your desk.

A proud graduate of the Detroit Public Schools' Mackenzie High School (now Mackenzie PK-8), Erica M Dean, M.Ed is the ELA Instructional Specialist at Greenfield Union Elementary/Middle School, and has worked for Detroit Public Schools since 2001. She is a member of New Providence Baptist Church, Sigma Gamma Rho Sorority, Inc.-Rho Sigma Detroit Alumnae Chapter, and several professional organizations. Follow her @emd4education or contact her via ericamdean.educator@gmail.com.