So if you haven’t been made aware of it yet . The whole state of West Virginia has been on strike for 8 days this Monday . This strike has made history due to the fact that all 55 counties in the state have stuck together and closed every school. This strike is not only about teachers, but public employees also. That includes cooks, bus drivers , aides, and service personnel. It’s takes a lot of people to make a school run well and without one part it’s not possible to have it fully functioning.
I’ve been doing a lot of thinking while not getting called to sub here recently. Thoughts just run like a wild fire through my head at times. While teaching abroad I met a ton of different people. I’m still friends with some and others were just acquaintances.
There was this girl I introduced myself to and told her I’m from West Virginia . When you tell people your from West Virginia you usually get one of three responses.
1.) Where is that?!
2. Oh yeah, Virginia! I know where that is! 🙄
3. Oh yeah, *insert singing here* Country Roads Take Me Home!
She responded with “When I think of West Virginia I think poor and uneducated.”
I was dumbfounded by her response to say the least and highly offended! I was so shocked by what she said I couldn’t find the right words to respond.
Instead I asked her where she was from and she said Kansas. And went of to tell me she was voted most likely to not leave her bubble in high school and so on. While I seemed to tune the rest out I couldn’t stop thinking about what she had said to me.
I grew up in a low income family, but it seems I never really noticed that I didn’t have much until I got older . But for that to be someones first impression of my State was unbelievable.
If you know me and know me well you know that I would give you the shirt off my back if you liked it. I’d go out of the way to try to help you. I’d offer you anything from my house just as if it were your own. I’ll give you my honest opinion and be a listening ear when you need one.
The thing is I’m not the only person that has these characteristics. If you ever come to West Virginia you will quickly see that anyone would go out of their way to help you if needed . People come together in times of need, and people work hard … Really hard to make a living.
I was offended when I heard her thoughts on West Virginia , but it made me realize how proud I am of the people in my State, and how hard people work to get what they want. I won’t lie her comment did make me really sad at first. I’d go out with friends and we would be drinking. Out of the blue her words would come back to me and make me really upset because regardless of where people are from no one wants to hear that.
I moved to West Virginia when I was 5 years old. As I got older I like many others wondered why we moved to West Virginia in the first place . My grandpa always told me it was a safe place and the people were some of the nicest you’d ever come by. It’s sad to say I had to leave before I realized that this was true.
I was so naive when I left West Virginia . I’d wave, smile, and say hello to people just passing by and they would look at me like I was a total weirdo . People I walked with would ask me if I knew that person I was saying hello to. Apparently that’s not really a thing in other places .
So back to this strike . I’m so proud of the teachers in West Virginia . Not only for standing up for what they want but doing it with class. We have not had school in 8 days . During the state wide work stoppage these last 8 days there hasn’t been any injuries. There are no threats being made . People in the community, Churches, and Teachers themselves have came together to still be able to feed students breakfast and lunch. The Churches have volunteered to watch students who’s parents still have to work or so parents can picket. Some students if not most of the Teachers kids have been on the picket line as well.
Some people will argue that the days are being wasted by not having school. I will beg to differ. A day is not wasted as long as you don’t make it that way. Go to the library, read a book, go to the park, work on some math, go on a trip. A child can learn from anything you do . You may surprised what you may learn in this free time as well.
If you haven’t heard about the strike please check out the following links below.
https://t.co/qGAwmUaYkf?ssr=true
The state wide work stoppage has gained a tremendous amount of attention from the media and public so far . Our Governor Jim Justice proposed a 1% for the next five years raise when teachers brought this up to begin with . That paltry amount won’t even be noticed on a pay check ! That jumped to 2% when teachers disagreed . Then he wanted to give teachers a 5% raise and service personnel 3% . Then this statement was issued from WVEA . Saying that the 5% should be for both teachers and service personnel and it’s not right to take from one to give to the other. It’s sad that we do have to fight against this .
Like I said before and I’ll say it again . I am so proud of the teachers for standing up for what they believe in. I am proud of the parents and service personnel. I’m proud of the support. I hope that we are able to see some change in the coming days. I know the teachers are willing to fight for it.
I know that I wouldn’t be where I am today if it hadn’t been for teachers along the way. Think about it you are in school for most of your life in school. At least 17 years if you go on to get a Bachelors degree. You spend 8 hours a day in school with your teachers up until 12th grade. How can you say that they have no impact on your life ? Teachers are the ones who help mold you into productive human beings. They help you find yourself . They are more than teachers in so many ways. I’m so thankful I had someone stand up and guide me along the way.
Even though our state may have some of the lowest incomes . I’m proud to be from such a place. A place that cares for their own people when the going gets tough. A place that comes together in unity when trying to improves their lives and the lives of others. A place that welcomes others. A place that has made history for such beautiful scenery. A place where people want better for themselves and will work hard to get that. I’m so proud to be a Mountaineer! I’m proud to be from West Virginia no matter what other people say!
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