The other day, sitting in front of the computer, contemplating past work, a thought rushed through. The student had become the teacher! Looking at the camera sitting on the side not yet gathering dust, many emotions rushed by. The work was fun, but the time was lacking. The student had excelled and the teacher knew not how to bounce back

Before a wave of gloom attempted to swoop in, some reflection time was needed. There has to be a process in place that is not exclusively time dependent that would allow a sweet comeback to take place. The feeling of showing and telling and inspiring is as addictive as the adrenaline high of a great workout. Sure, not as powerful, but equally potent a feel. But, without new found skills, it would be difficult to bounce back

Undaunted, unphased, a quick gulp of courage, an idea took root. What the student had in terms of time to pass the teacher, the teacher had in experience. It will be tricky. It will be difficult, but with razor sharp focus, it’s possible to mount a steep learning curve and master skills in a fraction the time and raise up to world class level.

The harsh reality to be faced is the jaded mentality that comes from being older and supposedly wiser. The teacher had seen so much, felt so much, hurt so much, grown so much, safe was now becoming the operative way of thinking. Too much to lose, too much to put on the line. The bills have to get paid, the career has to be built. But, the rat race was not appealing, not motivating, not growing in the direction of most fun. The student on the other hand had not yet been jaded by life. The student knew early on, freedom and mobility have a cost that is well worth paying.

For you see, the student learned from the interactions with the teacher that some degree of autonomy was very critical for sanity. Sure, the lesson wasn’t obvious to the student, but the teacher recognized the growth of that gem from the lessons many years ago.. so long ago, the student probably forgot the day of the lesson. But the teacher, having notes, remembered and vowed not to be embarrassed or ashamed by the role reversal.

Clicking on to the YouTube channel of the now teacher, the now student started to think and figure out what was going on. The photographic eye digested with voracity the information coming in. The lighting. The depth of field. The strategic swipes and fades. All making technical sense. But, oh but.. there is always a but. The tummy growled. But.. you see, age played a cruel joke. The famed imposter syndrome crept in. How can this old timer do these fancy nice tricks that clearly are software driven? Isn’t it true that the web is for these young millennials that the news keeps talking about?

Fighting back the feelings, the new student began taking notes. The wave of the future would leave anyone sleeping on the job behind. The pen came out, notes started to fly. A manual of how to do this started to take shape. The panic feeling turned into anticipation. A fire was beginning to light. With careful long distant observation, maybe, just maybe, this old timer had a few new tricks to learn. Sure, the thought of becoming the teacher again all but faded into the distance, but the thought of keeping up and having another chance to connect with the new teacher brought a smile to the face of this once vibrant teacher.

Who knows, there may be a second career option in the works. Maybe not teaching these young kids how to make their way through the web… no… that ship had sailed.. but maybe, there is hope that this student can once again be a teacher to like minded former teachers; giving them a second chance to shine in the more modern twenty first century. Teaching old timers how to take their creative passions and link them to this new web thing, as shown by the former student, could be the greatest gift this young teacher could have given this old student.