Opening a door to a classroom that opens my mind to creativity and design was a class I looked forward to everyday. A father, a role model an educator. Mr. Johnson was someone much bigger than a teacher. He’s an artist. He’s also the most intelligent man I’ve ever met.

I can remember the first day of his class junior year. While Mr. Johnson went through the list of rules, I couldn't help but laugh when he was naming them all off. “Watch where you put your fingers, ladies and gentlemen.”

Holding a sharp blade in my hands was something I wasn't to fond of doing.

In school I set goals for myself and would try to take knowledge out of classes. In ways, the concept of taking something out of a class was difficult for me to grasp for a class like chemistry. I never thought you could take something out of an art class, yet you can.

Through my high school years the one class I truly took something out of was Jewlery/Metals. I felt accomplished felt proud of myself. What you put in is what you get out of it. That statement never once ran through my head in any other class except Mr. J classroom.

Mr. Johnson taught all kinds of classes. Juniors, seniors all walked through that big metal door each day, which reminded me that kids are opening their minds to a class that doesn't involve a calculator by your side. I got to see different sides of students each day while being in there. That’s what made that class so special. It allowed me to let go of the outside world and create a project that were meaningful to myself and nobody else.

Patience, intelligence, time. I loved every wink of an eye Mr. Johnson would give me through the hallways. I felt like a teacher actually looked at me in a way that was special. He knew I struggled in that classroom, but he would never put me down for it. He cares for students and it shows with every smile he gives you.
I don’t walk out of most classroom being confident of what I just learned. I usually walk out feeling lost or confused. But every time I walked out of Mr. Johnson's classroom, I felt at ease. Most importantly, I felt as though I made his job special for him.

Everyone has a story of their hardships at home and and or in life. My story was different and Mr. Johnson understood it. With struggles at home, his class made my mind lose thoughts of the times at home. Not only did Mr. Johnson let my mind drift from reality -- but he also reminded me that my dream should never go untouched.

Being a timed teenage girl, sharp objects, blades and fire weren't my favorite objects to be holding in my hands.  There were days I would walk into class with a white dress on with sandals thinking, Taryn, what did you get yourself into? He was a leader — and that made my job of student easy. I’m not an Einstein for machine objects.

“Mr. Johnson, I’m sorry but what am I really trying to make here?” I said, while holding my lopsided, bent project. “ Ok let's take a look at this,” he said as he took me straight to the torch to redo my mistakes.
Coffee breaks, storytime and inspirational stories were the reasons why he was so special. He was teacher one day and designer the next. The projects that he comes up with are some you only see once in a lifetime.
To find a teacher that finds passion in his job that it makes you as a student reflect from it is, why some students become what their role models taught them. There's a reason Mr. Johnson put a smile on my face. He reminds me that making mistakes happen and should happen to grow stronger at your talent. You don’t only learn valuable lessons in his class but you take the projects away from his classroom to represent yourself.

Walking through Mr. Johnson's door the first day of class reminded me back to Kindergarten. Even when I was little I had to embark on a obstacles that tested by abilities. I hope one day again I can walk into a classroom and get the memories of what Mr. Johnson's class taught me.