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at the driver.My disappointment occurred when the individual appeared like anyone of us do on a given day, quietly going about their lives. Yet, the confusion I felt stemmed from the hidden agenda that exists behind the closed doors of today's society. Throughout the nation we are visualizing racism and discrimination at higher levels than we did in the turbulent sixties, when civil rights and Martin Luther King's freedom march begged the nation to begin to understand the meaning of diversity. Today, it's no longer the black nation that demands acknowledgement. Now the range of acceptance will be afforded to Somalians, Hispanics, Latinos, Russians, Czechs; the list could certainly be extended.

Society might ask that each family begin to pay attention to the needs of their children and practice expression that allows our world to evolve. We are not simply the United States. We are part of an inter-planetary cooperative, and with the now rooted merits of the internet, and affordable travel, opportunity to thrive and transition to our country from a less productive homeland, why not practice acceptance? Why not put the effort towards realizing the value of new ideas? Perhaps it is time to suggest that in our conception at birth to the end we all become human beings, that through the simple miracle of our mortality and a spiritually guided existence we are simply whom we are, nothing more unique than that. We all desire similar outcomes, to feel at peace and one with the world around us.

Our goals might be in the classroom to raise awareness and appreciation of each other's contributions rather than suggesting a quick judgement call that condones the violence and disconnect that haunts our daily existence. The world is a wonderful reality. The sun rises and sets in the same manner each day whether our environment is withstanding horrendous storms, or being bathed in sunshine. We cannot change that reality, so how is that we insist upon changing what is essential towards our purpose on earth; the appreciation and growth that will come with a dignified and supportive world believing in one outcome, the preservation and values that human lifet was meant to aspire. As a teacher, I have an opportunity that goes well beyond teaching to the test and standards that employ the concept of No Child Left Behind. That responsibility lies in a teacher and the parent's ability to help their child grow within the basic tenets of love and acceptance, sharing together the remarkable world we live in today.

Learn more about this author, Thom Amundsen.
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