Brave Teachers

Thich Nhat Hanh, Zen master, activist, and educational visionary.

“If we as teachers, along with our colleagues, are not happy, how can we expect the children to be happy?… The first step is to come back to yourself—the way out is in. Come back to yourself to be able to take care of yourself: learn how to generate a feeling of happiness; learn how to handle a painful feeling or emotion; listen to your own suffering, so that understanding and compassion can be born and you will suffer less. This is the first step and, as a teacher, you have to be able to do this.” —from Letter to a Young Teacher