My words never reached him; I could almost hear them drop, one by one, like so many pebbles against a closed… — Bel Kaufman

A teacher is frequently the only adult in the pupil's environment who treats him with respect.

With me they get a solid foundation, the disciplines of learning. In my class they don't get away with hot air discussions and exchanging their opinions and describing their experiences. What opinions can they have? What have they experienced? What do they know? That's an affront! They learn what I know.

Paul asks how I would have handled a love letter from a student. I don't know — by talking, maybe, by listening. I don't know.

How sad that we don't hear each other — any of us.

Major issues are submerged by minor ones; catastrophes by absurdities.