Mine is a family of teachers: parents, grandparents, siblings, nearly all of us. I’m so proud of that fact, it feels boastful to say it. I’ve always regarded teaching as the most honorable of professions. It’s inherently selfless: offering what you have to others.

I’ve only had opportunities to see my parents in the classroom a handful of times, but what I’ve seen makes me proud. They have very different approaches: Dad mostly gives prepared lectures, and relies on his great knowledge of and authority on the subject matter, which can be pretty inspiring. Mom is just as inspiring, but she favors a much more personal and interactive approach. A high school Spanish teacher, she has a classroom full of artifacts and decorations from Central and South America. Spanish music often plays as students come in, sometimes during class. Classes involve games, songs, drawing, skits and poetry. Even her work clothes and jewelry celebrate Hispanic culture. For 70 minutes a day, she immerses her students in Spanish. Beyond even that, she’s taken dozens of classes of students to Mexico and Guatemala during summer months.

As a kid, I thought Mom’s habit of decking out her classroom with piñatas and murals and funny lights, making up catchy little Spanish songs, and wearing chili pepper earrings was kind of quirky, but I never gave it much thought. Now I think it sums up her whole approach, one I’ve tried to emulate in my own teaching: Make the student love the subject. An inspiring lecture is great for a student who’s already interested, but a student who doesn’t yet appreciate the value of a class needs to be pulled in. Mom is the perfect teacher for a student like that: She’s brilliant, she loves her subject, and she has the skill to make her students love it, too.

I found out two weeks ago that my mother, Sylvia Hensley, is retiring from teaching after 38 years. I was confused. Retiring? Like… not teach anymore, retiring? Mom was a teacher before she was a mother… in my mind, it defines her. She’s been grading papers damn near every night of my life. I have literally NEVER seen her sit down without a stack of papers in her lap, unless she was 1) in church, 2) eating dinner, 3) driving, or 4) opening a Christmas present. Seriously. NEVER.

After my initial confusion, I felt kind of sad. Mom’s the best there is. Her retirement is a great loss to the next generation of students. They’ll never even know how great. But she’s already given so much for so long, her retirement is beyond well-deserved. And I know she’ll be just as great at the next thing.

Since 1975, Mom has been passing on her great knowledge of, and talent for, language. Her students have been breaking necks and cashing checks at district and state language festivals for decades, and she’s been justly recognized for excellence many times, most recently the “Teacher Who Made A Difference” award, nominated by her own students and honored by the University of Kentucky. Her students have been visiting, calling, writing letters, emailing and posting their gratitude and affection for her since she started doing this. Congratulations on a distinguished career, Mom. I love you, generations of students love you, and I couldn’t be any prouder of you.