The teacher that understood me…

When I walked to school for the first time in 1954, I was ready to discover a totally new learning universe, albeit in very dire and limited conditions.

We might have been 20 to 25 boys in one classroom, spread over 8 different grades and ranging in age from 7 to 14, so that was extremely tough for the teacher who had to juggle subject matters that could somehow get most of the kids involved and yet assume that close to a third of the students would fall through the cracks.

I was lucky to make the best out of bad situation, because I was naturally curious and already had a passion for doodling which might have showed some potential. My teacher, Monsieur Losserand, picked on that and encouraged that trait, whereas before my parents tended to dismiss it as totally “useless”.

He trusted me, took a chance on me and it worked! In my family, only the “useful” made the grade, not any artsy figment of talent! My teacher made me feel good and provided me with an alternative view to a world of hard work, discipline and totally devoid of fun.

Thank you Monsieur Losserand for mentoring me out of drudgery!