In the mid-seventies I finished my university studies and started my job as a high school teacher.
At first I felt a bit disoriented, I was very young and I had never done that job before, maintaining discipline in the classroom was exhausting. My students were teenagers, at that age most of them are usually very restless, they love to do all kinds of pranks, they fight among themselves... it is the natural response to the hormonal explosion that is happening in their bodies...
My co-workers recommended a firm hand, they were convinced that punishments were the only way to control the boys. But I thought that things should be different...
It took me a while to develop the ability to make the boys feel interested in my classes, to make our encounters pleasurable for them. To do this, I had to gain their trust. I dedicated myself to take them into account, to listen to them to find out what they were interested in, what they thought about life and the world, what problems were on their minds... In this way I found a way to organize the contents of the curriculum so that they would be close to them.
The years went by and parallel to my work at the high school I explored other things. I studied another career at the University related to business administration and even did some work in that area. But what I really liked was being in the classroom.
Faster than I thought twenty years went by, I was only five years away from my time of service at the high school, I was going to retire at the age of forty-six. At that time I got a teaching position at the University, my lifelong dream...I retired from the high school and continued at the University on a part-time basis, so I could enjoy a lot of free time. For me it was the ideal situation...
At the University I felt quite good, I loved sharing with my students, I enjoyed talking to them. Talking to the younger ones was a way of keeping me connected to the world. I always thought I would be at the University until I was strong enough. I had intended to retire at the oldest age possible, I wouldn't mind going with a cane, walker or wheelchair.
But my plan was changed by something beyond my control. In my country things started to go very wrong, the economy collapsed as a consequence of political mistakes, the salaries of public employees went to the floor. There came a time when my income was not even enough to pay for transportation to the University, so I stopped going, I was about to turn sixty years old...
Leaving the University was a hard blow for me, but the reality is that life goes on. Suddenly I was faced with the challenge of generating more income, something completely unexpected. It was normal that at my age I could live comfortably with what I received from my two retirements, but the devaluation and inflation made those incomes dust.
On the Internet I have managed to advise some research works in South American universities. It is not what I like the most but it completes my income and gives me the opportunity to continue studying and researching, which has always been my pleasure.
Six years ago I met HIVE and soon realized that it was a great place to be. I had never shared with people from different parts of the world before, which is really wonderful.
At HIVE I have also been able to explore some new things like photography and creative writing. If it wasn't for HIVE I'm sure I wouldn't have been encouraged to write a text like this, where I review things from my life.
Now I am very aware that the blockchain allows us to leave testimonies that can be seen by future generations. More than once I have imagined my granddaughters reading these writings, getting to know me a little more and telling their children what their grandfather was like...
But time does not pass in vain, my eyes are quite tired, I can no longer be unlimitedly in front of the screens, I have to manage very well the hours I dedicate to HIVE, to my readings and to keep myself informed. It is an annoying limitation, but as long as my strength allows it, I will be here.
I believe that everyone should have the opportunity to do the activities they enjoy regardless of their age.
It is true that there are jobs where physical ability becomes an insurmountable barrier. A young person will never be able to carry the same amount of blocks or sacks of cement as an older person.
But there are always other activities where older people can feel useful. Every older person has a wealth of experience and that is very likely to be useful to younger people...
I am publishing this post motivated by the initiative proposed by my friend @ericvancewalton, Memoir Monday, in its six week. For more information click on the link..
Thank you for your time.
Translated with DeepL.com (free version)
Logo creado por @themanualbot