Page 73 of His Curvy Distraction

“It was a bad joke, but I promise it was a joke. I love playing with the kids. I love being able to come up with new games and try different things. To be creative and expressive in a way I never could be when I was teaching. I thought teaching was going to be the right thing for me. I loved the idea of it, but when I was a student teacher, I started to see it wasn’t what I expected.”

“In what way?”

She shrugged and pursed her lips as though afraid to tell me what she thought. “Teachers are amazing, and it’s a valuable career. I wouldn’t be where I am without amazing teachers who were willing to see all of me.”

“You don’t have to extoll the benefits of teachers to me, Natalie.”

She pressed her lips up. “I know. Maybe I’m doing it for me. I spent a lot of time in school. I have a degree that would change things for a lot of people. But I don’t use it. It feels like I wasted my education, like I took something that was given to me and threw it away. It’s not always easy to be objective.”

“I think we all go into college with the best of intentions. We think we know what we’re getting into, but not everyone is going to come out with the same thoughts we walked in with. I know I didn’t.”

“What is your degree in?”

“Political science.”

She gave me a look that said I was full of crap.

I laughed. “Okay, yes, I’m using my degree, but I’m not normal.”

She smirked.

“Ha ha. I’m just saying it’s hard to make a choice when you’re seventeen that will rule the rest of your life. A lot of people can’t do it.”

She nodded thoughtfully. “I guess. I wish I’d been able to. I think teaching would be amazing if I could do things my way.”

“Instead of following the state guidelines?”

Her head bobbed side to side. “Somewhat. I get that there are things kids need to learn every year so they’re prepared for the following year, but not everyone learns the same. Some kids do better with action included in their lessons. Some kids need music. Some kids need to read or listen or write things down. There’s not space for all of that in schools.”

I shook my head. “No, there’s not. You’re right.”

“That’s why I love working at the community center, and now the rec center. I love being able to make recreation the biggest part of the day. Whether that’s physical activity or fine motor skills when they’re crafting with Trinity or any of the things they do. Amelia said when Trinity came in, it opened the eyes of a lot of the kids to other things. Some of them refused to do her crafts, but over time more and more have joined her. Now, it’s something the kids ask for and are so excited on the days she’s there that we can barely contain them.”

“That’s good. It’s good for them to have a variety of activities.”

She nodded, smiling softly. “It is. It’s very good.”

We finished our dinner and talked about the fundraiser. I relaxed and accepted that she was being honest about her intentions. She wanted the best for the kids, and she was working hard to get it.

I found myself wishing I had more money to give her to support her project. That was the danger of dating something within my hierarchy. An attachment could mean impropriety.

“What happens if you don’t get enough money to do everything you want to do for the summer camp?” I asked after I paid the check. We were finishing our drinks and not in a hurry to leave.

“Honestly, I don’t think we will get enough money. It’s a huge project, and it’s expensive. But if we don’t get enough money, then Amelia plans to put forth a proposal for the budget for the next fiscal year. She said there might be a way to get more. She’s full of ideas.” Natalie chuckled, her eyes wide like Amelia’s ideas were crazy.

“What other ideas does she have?”

“The one she keeps trying to talk me into is to hold a community building party. Like some charities do where they have volunteers come in and build a house or something. She wants to do the same thing but have people help out with constructing the building.”

“Is that possible?”

Natalie snorted. “I doubt it. We would need someone who knows what they’re doing to run it, and even the material costs are going to be pretty huge.”

“What if there were people who knew how to make that happen? And if we could get materials at cost?”

Natalie shook her head as I spoke. “I don’t want you getting involved. It’s not why I told you about it.”

“I asked.”

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