There is no doubt that covid-19 changed the world. Its impact will be discussed and written about for centuries. The pandemic of 2020-21 certainly changed my life, but in one instance, at least, it was changed for the better.
It had been a good four months since the pandemic had shut down all public gatherings and many people's livelihoods right along with it. After a few months of lockdown, half the people were afraid to go out to the grocery store and the other half insisted that the whole thing was being blown out of proportion. Once the vaccines were approved, you had half the people clamoring to get vaccinated and the other half being anti-vax and claiming we were being micro chipped. All the while, the number of cases peaked and everything remained closed. What a crazy time.
I had been furloughed for a couple months at that point and there was still no end in sight. With the entertainment venue I worked at now completely shuttered, management had no need for either a box office or stage manager, both of which I had served as, depending on the performer. As the summer changed into fall, the 2021 outlook was not much better than 2020, and certainly not for my struggling venue.
During that time, I learned about what basics really mean and just how possible it is to conserve and get by on very little. What do we really need after all? As it turns out, it's food, water, and shelter. Some good companionship goes a long way, too. Unfortunately, it takes money to pay for food, water and shelter, and my supply was dwindling fast.
Thanksgiving that year was even more bizarre since no one could get together. Eating my turkey and stuffing alone I thought long and hard about other careers that still needed people. What was I already qualified for that I could do right now until the pandemic subsided and things opened up again? I considered being a contact tracer or maybe an amazon delivery driver.
There was also a lot of talk in the news about schools throughout the autumn. Parents desperately wanted schools to re-open, presumably to get their kids out of their hair. Teachers and staff had already jumped through hoops facilitating online learning the previous spring and simply wanted to stay safe by following the CDC guidelines. Some kids took it as a vacation from school, and all of them missed their friends and fell behind in their education. The schools were in chaos, just like everything else.
A friend who works as the facility engineer at the school nearby told me that they were desperately seeking substitute teachers and I decided to apply. I researched a little and found that the only qualification necessary was a bachelor's degree and a clean background. I had both, so I decided to give it a shot.
The person at the district office I spoke to, Debbie, was extremely helpful and seemed grateful that I wanted to help out. I just figured it would be good way to earn money and keep myself busy until my venue reopened. The principal, Josh, was a forward thinking administrator and had decided that keeping a full time sub on staff would better prepare them for staff absences on short notice. He wanted someone who was always available, should any teachers develop a fever or cough and be forced to quarantine at home.
I said all the right things in the series of interviews and they hired me as their full time substitute teacher. I went through all the steps of getting finger printed and had my background checked, so that by the time 2021 rolled around, I was ready to begin my interim career as a substitute school teacher.
When school convened in early January, I was assigned to the 6th, 7th and 8th grade, and was soon immersed in the school atmosphere. Way different from the typical office settings I was used to, the middle school was full of perky and energetic teachers who seemed to love what they did, even though the responsibility they took on was far heavier than anything I'd ever witnessed in the business world. These teachers greeted each day with a smile and positive words for everyone they passed in the hallway, including me. How refreshing it was to feel appreciated for my small contribution, rather than the morose atmosphere in my old office. Everyone I met at the school made me feel welcome and valued.
My typical day began with reporting to the office. On most days, Kathy, the school secretary would have a binder ready for me and a sticky note telling me what room I'd be in for that day. I would then grab a cup of coffee in the lounge and proceed to my classroom. Oftentimes, the teacher I was subbing for was still present, but connected remotely, and my job was simply to take attendance and monitor the few in-person students in the classroom. Other days, when she had no assignment for me, Kathy would have me wait in the teacher's lounge and remain available in case anything came up. On days when I had no classroom to go to, they still paid me to sit there and read or take online courses about sexual harassment, cultural sensitivity, airborne pathogens, and the like.
It was way more fun to get assigned to a classroom, though, and even better when I was there to replace a Teacher's Assistant. On those days, I would get to see the actual teachers in action, and I marveled at their dedication. In this way, I got to work with and admire a range of teachers, most of whom appeared to be females in their twenties and thirties.
First was the English teacher, Stephanie. Short and full figured, this eastern European beauty filled her jeans and blouse nicely. I particularly enjoyed watching her when she would bend at the waist to help one of her students. Thoughts of sex were never very far from my mind, and seeing Stephanie's nicely shaped ass didn't help my focus. I shook off the distraction and concentrated on helping the students, but her sexy mannerisms made it hard. At the end of the day, she thanked me profusely for everything I had done to help her. There were other things I wished I could help her with if she wanted, but I kept my thoughts to myself and remained the perfect gentleman. Stephanie was cute, with a killer body, and looked like she knew how to please a man, but her frequent references to her husband told me she was off limits.
Next, I subbed for one of the few male teachers in the school, Steve, the social studies teacher. His wife, Beth, taught physical education and was nice enough to check in on me throughout the day. Poking her head into her husband's classroom door before the students arrived that morning, she said, "Hey, top o' the morning! Are you 'Steve' today?"
"I guess so," I shrugged. "I'm Sam."
She stepped into the classroom, saying, "Hi Sam, I'm Beth. Steve asked me to check in on you. Everything okay?"
I admired her sleek physique as she crossed the classroom toward my desk and thought that she must work out a lot to keep herself in such tip top shape.
"Everything is great!" I replied. "Steve left excellent instructions. I should be fine."
"Okay," she said, "I'm right down the hall in the gym if you need anything. Just let me know." Then she spun on her heels and left. Watching her tight ass move from side to side as she exited made me think that Steve probably had a lot of fun with her. I knew it was wrong to constantly fantasize about the sexy school teachers all around me, but I couldn't help it. Hot twenty and thirty year old babes will do that to me every time.
After that, I assisted with the special needs children. Their teacher, Julie, was a slim redhead with pretty eyes and outstanding curves. With everyone fully masked in school, I didn't know what the rest of her face looked like, but her smiling Irish eyes were sweet. For Julie's class, the school tried to keep a higher ratio of instructors to students, so I was surrounded by various attractive teacher assistants. Coming and going throughout the day, a variety of specialists came in to work with individual kids, or to impart lessons to all.
One specialist in particular struck me as especially cute and good at what she did. When she entered Julie's room. The kids lit up and so did she. Such excitement and enthusiasm. How graceful, how spritely. A bush of dark, curly hair held in a tight ponytail swayed about following her as she moved animatedly around the room. She was ON with those kids, and they loved her. Her name was Ms. Laura and she taught speech therapy. She worked so beautifully with the kids, crouching down beside them to help them match the name with the picture on the cards spread before them, or filling in the blanks on worksheets. Her lilting voice sounded like music as she laughed with the kids and praised them for their efforts. Before she left that day, she made a point to thank me, too.
"Thank you so much for everything you do!" she said.
"Oh, you're very welcome," I stammered. "It's you and the other teachers who deserve all the thanks, Laura. You're doing an incredible job despite all these covid restrictions, and you are so good with the kids. Thank you!"
She smiled behind her mask and touched my arm lightly as she exited the room. I admired her shapely figure and bobbing ponytail as she walked away.
Later, alone with Julie after the kids were released for the day, she thanked me also. "Sam, you were great with the kids today. Coming back tomorrow, I hope." she said.
"If Kathy assigns me to you, then yes," I replied. "I really enjoyed myself today."
The next day, I was indeed assigned to Julie's class. The more time I spent with her and her kids, the more rewarding it felt. The day was highlighted by another visit from Laura and soon the whole room was filled with childish laughter.
"It's fun to learn, huh?" she asked the class enthusiastically.
"Yeah!" they all cheered.
At the end of the day, as I was grabbing my lunch box from the fridge, I ran into Laura in the teacher's lounge. "You were amazing in June's class today!" I told her.
