by Cindy Nguyen
M
One Cool Orch Dork
y forkful of fries clattered haphazardly against its dish. The chefs behind the counter gasped—I could scarcely see their pupils dilating. Was that drop of sweat on their brow from the stove heat or from my friend and ex-teacher, Arlene Miyata? Just one bite of her ahi tuna melt had her arch back in her bar stool, eliciting unceremonious sounds. “Should we call for medical attention,” one of the chefs frantically questioned. Arlene dismissed his remark with a wave. “It’s,” she began, “so 1
good!” The chefs and I had never been more startled at someone’s first bite reaction. In the car ride home, she drummed her fingers to the sound of the radio, perfectly on beat, chirping “That was a really good lunch.” I would say her passion for music was less heart attack-inducing, but that would be far from the truth. With precision, Arlene places the final block to complete her Harry Potter Lego set. In the same manner, her hand slowly drops with the orchestra in a sustained decrescendo as a hush descends. “Okay, do it again.”
Her lego blocks may groan as they reset themselves, but she was their bulldozer, paving a path of foundation and giving them direction. When astray, she pushes them back on track and helps them in any way she can— advice, tough love, or a cookie. She encourages their passion and expressionism. In turn, they develop skill sets found outside of the classroom setting, applicable in the real world and proven through research, becoming stronger in academic studies. She teaches them the meaning of fun, perseverance,