Water Fountain
By: Claire Bourke
I hope you are all doing well and staying healthy. Our school has been cancelled until at least May 1, so I have a lot more time on my hands to rest and reflect. The following is a true story that happened a few weeks ago. I thought you may appreciate this glimpse into the life of a fourth grade teacher.
It was a day like any other. I had been back to school for about two weeks after my sabbatical, and my class was still readjusting back into a rhythm. We were about to take our scheduled restroom break after recess when I noticed that my class was having a difficult time with the habit of obedience. They were not following the normal restroom rules and needed to reset. So, I took them back to the classroom for a moment to let them put lunchboxes away and rest with their heads down. Then, we reviewed the restroom procedures and lined up to try it again.
Everything was going so smoothly. I was having a moment where I felt like the world’s best teacher. My children were being so polite and respectful, and we were even able to joke a little. My plan to reset them had worked. Little did I know how quickly that feeling could be snatched away from me. Out of the corner of my eye I saw it happen. It should be noted that our school was built in the early 1900s. Many things in our school have been updated over the years, as we no longer wish to have lead pipes for our sinks and water fountains. Our upstairs water fountain is attached to a plastic tube, for example. On this particular day, as one boy leaned in to take a drink from the water fountain, his knee accidentally bumped the bottom of the water tube. This may have happened many other times throughout the past few years, thus weakening the connection. This time, however, the tube fell off, causing an immediate gush of water.
Instantly, it sounded as if there was a waterfall in our hallway. I raced into action, trying desperately to reattach the connection. The waterflow was so strong, however, that I could not do it. Instead, I became soaked. At this point, the poor kid who caused the incident was running in circles with his hands on his head screaming, “I didn’t do it!” Meanwhile, one of my girls asked if she should get help from the office. I told her yes, and consequently ALL of my girls took off sprinting to go get help.
“Wait! You don’t all need to go!” I yelled, but it was no use. They were gone. My class was freaking out, I was wet, and felt helpless to fix the situation. I was forced to watch as our hallway became flooded from the damaged fountain. At that moment, I saw all of my girls sprinting back with our principal and secretary. The maintenance man followed shortly behind. They were able to turn the water off and fix the connection.
One would assume that this story is over, but the best moments happened when we returned to the classroom. My principal pulled aside the child who had the unfortunate luck of breaking the fountain and assured him that he was not in trouble. I gave the class a moment to settle in and calm down, then began teaching. As I began the lesson, one girl raised her hand. “Um…Mrs. Bourke? Do you happen to have a brush? Because your hair is REALLY messy.” I told her that I did not, in fact, have a brush, but I appreciated her concern. After school, I went up to my principal to follow through, and he just started laughing. He informed me that the security tapes of this incident were pure gold. I had forgotten about the security tapes. Much to my embarrassment, this moment has been captured and recorded for all to see. I asked him why they are gold, and he relayed what he saw. At first he saw a sweet classroom moment. He commented on how sweet I was with all of my kids, and he could tell that we were having good conversations during our restroom break. Then, THE VIDEO FEED CUT OUT. The part with the fountain exploding? Gone. The part where I tried heroically to fix the problem? Gone. The very next thing on the tape was my girls sprinting down the hallway and me standing there looking bewildered. I was sure to tell my principal the rest of the tale.
When I was reflecting on this moment, I thought about what the fountain might represent, what my class represented, and what the water represented. I thought about how life is not perfect. There are times that I have one thing under control, yet another issue springs forth. Sometimes I may have to delegate and ask others to get help. At the right moment, help did, in fact, arrive. Also, I am never really in charge of what happens in life. That is up to the Father and his plan for my life. I think that day, He knew that I was taking life too seriously and trying to rely on my own strength to control things (which is part of what always gets me in trouble). I can look back on this stressful moment now and laugh. It bonded my class together because of our shared experience.
This school year has been unlike any other. I was gone for two months, was back for a month, and then school closed due to a worldwide pandemic. Nothing is certain right now, but we can all find rest and comfort in the steadfast love of the Father. Isaiah 43:2-3 says, “When you pass through the waters, I will be with you; and when you pass through the rivers, they will not sweep over you. When you walk through fire, you will not be burned; the flames will not set you ablaze. For I am the Lord your God, the Holy One of Israel, your Savior.” No catastrophe is too big for God. God will not let us drown when things are out of control. He is sovereign over all things. May we put our trust in him during these tumultuous times.
