Every year on Teacher’s Day, my phone lights up with messages, wishes, and warm notes. Some are from students, some from parents, some from friends. And every year, I pause and reflect: what does it really mean to be a teacher? Is it just about standing in front of a class with a textbook? Is it only about degrees, certificates, and job titles? Or is it something far deeper, something that cannot be contained within a profession?
I say this because my own story with teaching did not begin when I became a mother. I was already an educator by profession — I had the degree, the training, the classrooms, the lesson plans. Teaching was my job, my career, and I loved it. But when I became a mother, and later when my daughter Aarshia was born with Down syndrome, everything changed. Teaching was no longer just something I did. It became who I was. It became my mission.
From Profession to Purpose
When you’re a teacher by profession, you measure success by results — grades, exams, milestones. But when you’re a teacher by instinct, you measure success differently. You celebrate the small victories. One new word said clearly. One sentence read with confidence. One smile when a child realizes, “I can do it.”
When Aarshia was younger, I was told all the things she “wouldn’t be able to do.” That she might never speak clearly, never read, never stand in front of people with confidence. And I’ll be honest, in the beginning it shook me. But then I realized that the power of being able to create something that can truly help my daughter came from the awareness that my resources, methods and knowledge could potentially change the course of her life and that idea was enough for me to leave all doubts aside and start creating.
Also read: ‘Strings of Motherhood’ For A Special Needs Mom
And as I walked this journey, I noticed something shift. The idea of a teacher in my mind expanded. A teacher is not only someone who explains lessons; a teacher can be a mentor — someone who sees your potential before you see it yourself, someone who gives you courage when you’re ready to give up, someone who nudges you to grow in ways you never thought possible.
It reminded me of a line by Henry Brooks Adams that has stayed with me:
“A teacher affects eternity; he can never tell where his influence stops.”
This is not a quote you see on posters often, but it is one that defines exactly what I came to believe. Because a good teacher doesn’t just shape a lesson, they shape a life. They create ripples that last far beyond the classroom, often without ever realizing the depth of their impact.
And somewhere along this road, I understood that I didn’t just want to “teach” children — I wanted to be that mentor, that influence, that spark of change. That realization transformed teaching for me from a profession into a purpose.
The Teacher Within Us
This is when I truly understood something: we all carry a teacher inside us. You don’t need a degree to be one. You don’t need a classroom, or a blackboard, or even a timetable. A teacher is simply someone who refuses to give up on another human being’s growth.
Sometimes that teacher is a school teacher, yes. But sometimes it’s a parent who keeps showing the same word card patiently until the child smiles and gets it. Sometimes it’s a neighbor who shows kindness at the right time. Sometimes it’s a friend who gives you advice about your blind spots that shifts your perspective. And sometimes, it’s our own children, teaching us lessons in resilience, joy, and acceptance that no textbook ever could.
When we, as parents, learn to see life through the eyes of a seeker, we begin to find teachers everywhere. And when we step into our own role as teachers for our children, something powerful happens — we are no longer “just caregivers.” We are guides, coaches, nurturers, and co-travelers.
And when you find someone like that — in your life, in your child’s life, or within yourself — you’ve found a gift. That person can change not just a child’s learning, but the entire family’s journey.
Coming Full Circle
So when I say teaching has transformed me, it’s not about a career change. It’s about how becoming Aarshia’s mother turned me into the kind of teacher who doesn’t just instruct, but nurtures, creates, experiments, and persists. It’s about filling the gaps when systems fall short, not just for my child, but for other families who walk the same path.
Today, on Teacher’s Day, my heart overflows with gratitude — for the teachers who shaped me, for the parents who share their journeys with me, for the therapists and doctors who guide us, and most of all, for my children who, in their own way, have been my greatest teachers.
Because at the end of it all, I believe this: a teacher is not made. A teacher simply is. And when you find one — in a school, at home, among friends, or even in your own child — celebrate them, thank them, and hold them close.
Happy Teacher’s Day to every teacher out there — whether you teach in a classroom, at home, or simply through love. You are not just shaping a child’s skills, you are shaping a family’s future.
