My Cardboard Balcony

Two Years Ago by Belinda Roddie Two years ago, I was hired at a school where I could teach my students one-on-one. My fellow teachers were all pretty cool, and classes I held were a lot of fun. I taught both English and Social Studies, as well as basic Spanish. I learned so much and improved my own expertise. There's so much more I understand and know from working with such strong, amazing youth with different stories that they've learned to tell without shame and without fear. And the truth is, I gained strength and courage as well. These two years have been two of my life's best - my next adventure will be quite the test.

"Wait...how many pairs of shoes do you have?" Nora demanded to know. "I dunno." Harriet shrugged. "Twenty-two? Twenty-three, maybe?" "Do you really need that many pairs?" "Of course!" Harriet pointed to her pile of high heels. "Every pair is for a different occasion. There's a difference between holiday heels and date night heels. And don't even get me started on my daily sneaker regimen!"