The King of the chessboard, the teacher of the class

The following is an entry to this competition https://steemit.com/contest/@steemit-virus/steemit-virus-contest-8-awarding-creativity based on the following prompt:

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I work teenagers as a mentor and a teacher to them. I not only teach them academically, but the system is so that I have to follow up with them on a regular basis. I always saw my role as a king on a chess board. I don't see my position as a king that needed protection, but a general of sorts, directing my students to success.

In my class there were very capable students, they were my knights, my queen, winning competitions and scoring the best results in the class. I had also bishops and rooks that helped me charge forward, helping me with events of the class and keeping the class morale up.

And then there were the pawns. The ones that were insignificant, the ones that were deemed expandable.

Or so they say.. As the king, the leader, the teacher of my class, it is my duty to get them to the opposite of he chess board, to change these pawns into bishops, rooks, knights and even a queen.

The same happened with 2 of my pawns. One pawn by the name of Adam was accused of cheating. But I knew Adam, just because he was from a bad family doesn't mean that he was not an honorable man. So I defended him and true enough he was framed for something he did not commit. The people in charge did not bother listening to Adam's side of the story and punished him without much investigation. This pawn has gone on to be a creative director of a company. He has reached the other side of the chess board and transformed from a pawn to a bishop. Now he moves a company in a creative direction.

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I had another pawn, Daniel who was not financially blessed but brilliant academically. When the time came for him to further his studies. He did not have the means. I contributed some of my savings, which was enough to get him into university. That entrance into university helped him secure a scholarship. Daniel has now turned from a pawn to a knight, doing extremely well academically.

My intention of writing so is not to shout of how great I am but for us to always remember the pawns. Often times, it is easy to ignore the pawns because of the bishops, the knights the ones who are more charismatic in class or among the people that we are leading. It is difficult to see the good in the loud, the poor and the ones who did not have a head-start in life. It is the job of the teacher to see that and from there, guide the students towards realizing their potential no matter their background.

Before I end, I have one final word about the king on the chessboard. Do you know why you can never sacrifice the king to win a chess game? That's because the moment the king is taken, all the other chess pieces fall with the king. If the teacher is taken, the class falls with the teacher. However, if the teacher decides to make a difference, the class rises and does well because of that teacher.

For those who are out there teaching, you matter, you are important, now bring your side of the chess, your class to victory.

Dedicated to all the teachers out there. You are doing an amazing job.

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