You know how they invade your space and take over an aspect of your life, but you somehow enjoy them doing so?
That was Shakey.
I met her when she was a sloppy kid, and she’d break into my room and scream about me owing her money. She was one of the few students who could make ME laugh, and she wasn’t even my student at first. Her brother was.
My little journalism program was a year in the making, and it had done well that first year.
But then enter Shakey, my girl. She took the Editor-in-Chief job and blew it out of the water.
With her, we created a historic mayoral debate, exposed district corruption, and won COUNTLESS awards in county competitions for our newspaper and yearbook (all of which she helped to direct). We even made a movie!
We spent HOURS AND HOURS together. She stayed late. I picked her up at her apartment. I even made the school buy her home internet service … just so we could work online together.
She was my Granger Daughter. She was the heart and soul of my teaching career.
When all that went down, went down, Shakey LEAPED to my rescue. She emailed me in county jail offering to testify on my behalf; she wrote letters of recommendation, and organized other students to do the same.
She also went online to debate internet retards who’re commenting about my situation.
They teased her. They taunted her. They called her names. They insisted THEY KNEW who I really was, and that Shakey was dumb. No, the truth is Shakey knew me better than any student. She knew my family. We were so very close. Nothing in her experience with me would EVER lead her to believe I was capable of doing ... of doing ... what I did.
Shakey was there, defending me and our time together when other people could not be bothered or were too scared.
To write I am a douchebag for making her look stupid in defending me … well, that would be obvious enough.
Shakey, girl, I love and miss you. I am sorry. I am so sorry. I won’t ask for forgiveness because I do not believe in forgiveness. Forgiveness is overrated. Wrong is wrong, and I cannot change what I did and what I put you through emotionally, personally.
But I do owe YOU an apology.
But I do owe YOU an apology.
And I mean it.
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Craig Edward Kelso is the author of Anarcho-Capitalism (2014), a primer on the philosophy of peaceful, stateless cooperation. His curriculum vitae include a Bachelor of Arts in Political Science from San Diego State University, and a Post-Baccalaureate secondary education credential in both Social Science and English Language Arts. Kelso taught for nearly a decade in the American public school system, and was voted by colleagues Teacher of the Year, twice in his short tenure, earning numerous accolades from chambers of commerce, mayors, state assembly persons, governors, congresspersons, senators, and even Wal-Mart. Currently he struggles to earn an opportunity to be employed, working as a laborer, dishwasher. He is deliriously happily married to Myra Kelso, living in Southern California with their adorable children.
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Craig Edward Kelso is the author of Anarcho-Capitalism (2014), a primer on the philosophy of peaceful, stateless cooperation. His curriculum vitae include a Bachelor of Arts in Political Science from San Diego State University, and a Post-Baccalaureate secondary education credential in both Social Science and English Language Arts. Kelso taught for nearly a decade in the American public school system, and was voted by colleagues Teacher of the Year, twice in his short tenure, earning numerous accolades from chambers of commerce, mayors, state assembly persons, governors, congresspersons, senators, and even Wal-Mart. Currently he struggles to earn an opportunity to be employed, working as a laborer, dishwasher. He is deliriously happily married to Myra Kelso, living in Southern California with their adorable children.
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