Chapter 11

This chapter doesn't really talk about the students too much, but Torey does talk more about her relationship with Joc. In the book this takes place over Christmas break. The two of them had just thrown a nice Christmas party, something that Torey wasn't usually in to but Joc had insisted. Torey had had a good time, and so did Joc. The next day they were sitting together wrapping presents as Joc talked about how big of a success the party was. During one of the silences Joc tells Torey that they should get married. This takes Torey by surprise, as she knew she wasn't ready to marry anyone and she had always known that she wasn't meant to marry Joc, but they were in a good place at the moment. When she hesitated to answer Joc becomes angry and tells Torey that her job has consumed her life and it is because of her kids that she won't get attached enough to anyone. He tells her that no one is going to want to be with someone who comes with an insane asylum. Even though Torey hadn't even been thinking about her classroom when he asked that question, and was hesitating because it was just a really big thing to think about, this only confirmed what she previously knew. Joc described being with her as being in a bed with two other people: Torey and her job. Torey tried to explain that it wasn't another person, and that her job was just a part of her, but Joc ended up leaving. He came back later in the evening to apologize, and told her that he knew they weren't going to end up together but he had to have at least tried.

I think this is an interesting thing to think about. It is important to think about what is important in the classroom but also how one's job is going to affect other parts of their life. Is it going to affect the people you are with: significant other, friends, family? If so, what sorts of sacrifices are we willing to make. Are we going to be with someone who isn't going to make us sacrifice something we are passionate about? These are all good questions to think about when it comes to having a career of any sort, let alone a teaching career where work always comes home.