Magic Minute Making A Difference

MAGIC MINUTE // It’s never easy to know if our words have made a difference.

As a secondary school emergency teacher, I noticed a year-8 student seem a bit lethargic. “You seem a bit tired,” I said.

“Yeah, I am. I’ve been playing chicken with trains all night in Melbourne’s underground loop.”

“You’re what?!”

“Oh, they can’t find us cuz we’re all dressed in black!”

“Well, I suggest you stop doing this. I thought you were more sensible than that!”

After class, I got him to stay behind.

“When I was your age,” I quietly began. “I once did something dumb like this myself. Me and my mates lowered ourselves out of a moving train carriage and holding on to the ledge above us, we crab walked along the bar outside the train to the next carriage, then hauled ourselves back in for a dare. How dumb was that?!”

He sat there taking all this in.

“From now on, I want you to think for yourself and not blindly go along with your dumb mates like I did.”

3 years later, I was back at the school and he’d grown bigger. “Hello, Mr. Smale,” he warmly said.

“I hope you’ve given up on those midnight excursions!”

“Nah, don’t do that anymore. I got a job now.”

It’s nice when our words have made a difference.

I’m Laurie Smale… Till my next Magic Minute.🪄

#lauriesmale #magicminute #findingmefindingyou #emergencyteacher #playingchicken #blindlyfollow

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