My Superheroes

      This past weekend we had some wonderful people over to our house to enjoy some much needed down time. No these were not famous folks or wealthy socialites or A-listers, but they are superheroes in my eyes nonetheless. The guest list consisted of teachers, their spouses, their kids and a policeman and his beautiful family. Of all the people that we have invited to our house, it is with these folks that I feel the most at ease and comfortable. There were no shallow or forced conversations, no one-upping, no networking, no judging, just friends enjoying one another's company. There is such a positive energy from this group and under the circumstances I find that utterly amazing.

      Our state has become infamous lately for its backward progression in many areas. One of the most notable is in public education. The state government has decided to cut the state's education budget so deeply that it will likely never recover. Those in charge here have put greed and the almighty dollar ahead of the state's future by devaluing their teachers, the education process and worst of all, their children. The reason for their decision to abandon us is simple, we cannot afford to fund their never ending avarice. Teachers simply do not have the money to get the state lawmakers attention, neither unfortunately do the thousands of children whose greatest crime was to be born into a poor or middle class family that happens to reside in NC.

      It breaks my heart to see so many wonderful, talented teachers leave North Carolina to pursue work elsewhere. They simply have no choice. At some point, each and every teacher here will be forced to choose between the financial security of their family and a state that they love. Unfortunately for many working as a teacher in North Carolina will no longer be a viable option. The mass exodus has already begun. Teachers like everyone else, have children to raise and older parents to care for and they can't do it on a salary that barely covers the monthly bills. When you devalue educators to such a degree it is the children that pay the price because their teachers are working two and three jobs in order to make ends meet. How can they possibly do their best when they are exhausted and spread so terribly thin?

      Our governor just recently approved a raise for his cabinet because he said that they needed to keep up with the cost of living. What about teachers?  With the exception of one year in the past six our pay has been frozen. That one year, an election year, we got a 1% raise which amounted to a mere $35 in my monthly paycheck after you take into account the fact that my health insurance costs have been steadily increasing every single year. My pay simply cannot keep up. The joke at work is that soon we will all be forced to leave because we will be paying NC for the privilege of working here.

      All of the people that come to hang out and relax on Fridays have every reason to be complaining and whiny and just plain nasty but you know what? They are not. They are as loving, as kind, as jovial and as fun as they have ever been, despite the best efforts of some very mislead, selfish and cruel individuals. I think it says a great deal about their character.

      My superheroes may not wear capes but they sport some bright, encouraging smiles. They may not be capable of scaling buildings with a single bound but they produce some phenomenal one liners and are relentless in their good natured teasing. They may never be wealthy but they understand the value of things that money cannot buy like integrity, generosity, loyalty, honesty and friendship. So my pay it forward for any Friday that I can, is to host a group of wonderful, giving people who are hanging in there together. Here's hoping that there are brighter days ahead.

Laurie