Under the bridge

Every year I have an autograph book that I have all my students sign.  They can leave a little note, or just sign their name, but I ask all of them to do so.

Invariably at least one of them in every class will ask me why I’m doing this.

I tell them that you never know what the future holds.  I went to junior high school with Magic Johnson.  Nobody at the time knew one day he’d be famous.  I went to high school with Orel Hershiser.  Nobody knew that one day he’d play in the major leagues and set the record for most consecutive scoreless innings pitched.  I tell them that there’s no doubt in mind that someday one of them will be famous and I’ll have their autograph.  I tell them that one day they’ll be able to say to their kids, I went to high school with _________.

One of my classes has a young man who is a very good baseball player.  He’s got multiple pro scouts at every one of his games.  He’s not the best student though.  In that class today I used him in my example.  “One day you’ll be able to tell your kids you went to high school with A____ H_____”

A girl sitting near the back of the room said, “Yeah, someday I’ll be able to tell my son, ‘Hey, you see that ashey bum under the bridge over there?  That’s A____ H_____, I went to high school with him.  That’s what happens to you when you pay someone else to do your homework.'”