“Thank you for putting Torah values back into therapy practices”
“Olam hafuch raisi,” said Rabi Yehoshua. “I saw those who are considered high here were low there, and those considered low here were high there.”
I think of that gemara every time the issue of low teacher’s salaries is brought up, as Leah Klein did so eloquently. Because in this world, teachers receive so little pay; their salary is inversely related to their contribution to society. They usually drive yeshivish cars and dress their families simply. They’re not wealthy enough to be on any board or decision-making body. Their homes are not large enough to host parlor meetings. And unfortunately, today, they’re also not particularly respected by their students or the parents. Or by the community, unless they make it to the top and become school principal.
The only serious acknowledgment they really get is a small end-of-year gift and some compliments scrawled on a thank-you note. But as they say in Israel, “Im machmaot lo konim bamakolet.” You can’t pay for groceries with compliments.
I’m sure in Olam HaEmes, teachers are A-list celebrities. I imagine that the malachim rise when they arrive Upstairs. Meanwhile, it’s up to us as a community to make sure that teachers can afford to feed their families. And as the TBH pointed out, we’re failing at that.
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