Wednesdays with Teacher Russ

Somewhere along the line, they decided I’d teach a class of Science. For one period we’d put down the books, pull out an experiment. So we jotted down lists of supplies and sent a T.A. off to buy tools for writing secret messages.

The first step, the guide said, was to mix baking soda and water. Dip in a cotton swab and make a pen, write down and let dry. Next, drop the swab into grape soda and reveal the message. The kids had a different idea.

When I walked towards the back of the class, like she always does, Lisa snuck up and erased the name of my lesson. In place of “Science,” which I’d written inside my best-drawn beaker, she scribbled in her own plan for the day: Play.

To them it was as we wet papers with juice and showed off the caked-on green designs the chemical reaction left, all full of characters and mean words about the other students. And in the stack I got a present in the form of a complaint about my school, Avalon.

Grinning, Jack held his experiment up, showing off the words: I hate Avalon but I love Russ.

My job was done.