My first day of junior year at Arrowhead Highschool, I walked into first hour Yearbook. Tired, dragging my feet and looking for my friend, I’m met with a massive wave of energy. I turned to find the teacher with a bright smile on her face. How, on Earth, does someone have that much energy?
Right from the start, Mrs. Danay seemed like the sweetest person. We got closer throughout the year. When I couldn't get photos taken or pages done because of my living situation, Mrs. Danay found a way to make the deadline, never docking me points. She understood that my dad was strict and made it difficult for me to get my work done. At times I felt like I couldn't do enough, so she gave me extra tasks.
I could talk to Mrs. Danay about what was going on in my life. It made me feel like someone understood and supported me. It was a sad moment when I had to tell her my dad wouldn't let me take Yearbook again my senior year. I felt like I was about to say goodbye to a friend. He didn't want me wasting my time in a “fluff class.”
A day or two before exams, I was in study hall when Mrs. Danay came to find me. She thanked me for the work I’d done throughout the year. She told me she would miss me. She even gave me a card and a Starbucks gift card. She genuinely looked sad as she said her goodbye. That's when I happily told her I changed my schedule, including yearbook. The grin she gave me is impossible to forget.
Senior year. I walk into second hour Yearbook. Just like home. We get reacquainted, talking about how much better this year will be. She named me an editor and we discussed the plans for the book.
Mrs. Danay learned I was about to move out of my dad’s house. The day it was to happen, she wished me luck. That meant more than I can put into words. Someone other than my friends remembered what I was going to do and hoped that it went well. Adults had never taken an interest in my life before. When Mrs. Danay did, it was validating beyond belief.
When I came back to school Monday after I moved she asked me, “How did it go? Are you free?” Most of my teachers knew what I did but she was the only one that asked me how it went.
I know what makes her a fantastic teacher: an interest in her students, an energy that overflows, and a sweet personality like lemonade on a hot summer day.
Not long ago she told me “I appreciate you, Annah.” I think about that often. Even if I thought it was a small and simple task, the folio to be exact, she was thankful. Mrs. Danay is the first teacher to make me feel like I can go somewhere in my future and have worth now.
In my freshman year, I was asked to write an essay about what the perfect teacher would be like, if I had known Mrs. Danay then, the words on the page would read, “Mrs. Danay.”