I need to tell you a story:

Today in my Literature & Film class my professor went around the room and had all 54 of us say our names. Just once. He then proceeded to talk to us for a few minutes, then went again around the room and named perfectly, without missing a beat, every single student in that classroom.

We were all speechless.

One girl raised her hand and asked him how he did it, what sort of memorization tools he had learn and utilized to pull off a feat like that.

And do you know what he said?

Motivation.

"I simply have a deep, deep desire to know each of you personally," he said, "and I want to do that so badly, that I just...remember. I don't think there's really any other way to do it."

Of course, being an English teacher, he said it with much more eloquence than my attempted quote there, but still...beautiful.

If every teacher I had cared that much, I'd probably have passed Spanish 101 sophomore year.

(or maybe if I had just gone to class. whoops.)

The sad part in all of this is, I just had to look up HIS name to write it in here.

Just shows you how much I really have to learn from him.

Thank you Professor Steven Walker.

You've made me want to do better.

Katie