Mr Hainer, my grade 5 teacher, wore a thin black moustache and a vest with a pocket fob watch. He was fascinating. Mustachioed men in vests with pocket watches were not seen in my blue-collar world of farmers and construction workers.
Mr Hainer walked into the classroom with an air of superiority. I always felt small and insignificant in his presence. Unworthy of his attention I did my best to avoid interacting with him.
There was one instance when my friend and I wanted to know if we could work on a project together. We timidly approached his desk and asked for his approval.
With a haughty look he answered our question with a question.
“I don’t know what that means” I said.
” Well, if you don’t know what it means then I guess you can’t work together.” he said.
We didn’t know what to say so we walked away baffled. What does knowing the meaning of a word have to do with working together on a project?
I wish I could go back in time and say to him, “Mr Hainer, you’re so pedantic!”
