That first lecture..

Excited and nervous she was in equal measure

To deliver a lecture that had cut into her time of leisure

She had prepared her first talk with great attention

To detail, meticulously she had made her slide presentation

Spent hours in research, added vignettes carefully curated

On each point, she had over hours deliberated

College students tended to have a short span of attention

She knew, thus adjusted her content for their comprehension

As the day approached, she felt increasingly confident

That her lecture would be received well by most students.

 

She was newly minted in her formal role as a teacher

An unexpected fate awaited her as she walked in to deliver

Her lecture- there were only a handful of souls in sight

Nevertheless she tried to look on the side bright

At least the ones present looked vaguely interested

Hopefully they understood how much she had invested

Of herself in this lecture, knowing that first impressions

Often last, and would set the tone for further sessions..

 

Despite the dismal attendance she proceeded

As the lecture progressed, her confidence receded

No one was interested in what she had to say,

So it seemed to her- she was ready to call it a day.

She managed to finish, her eyes glistening with tears

At what was an obvious failure, exposing all her fears..

 

That was a day forty plus years ago

She is reminiscing over the pain of that blow

Today she is about to be felicitated

Her retirement is being celebrated

She has had a long and illustrious career

As an educator, a talented teacher

Unlike the first day her lectures now

Manage to run out of room somehow

To accommodate all those who throng to hear

Her pearls of wisdom, year after year…

Since her first day as a teacher, a long way she has come

The ideal teacher she wanted to be, she has become..

(image source:https://www.quotemaster.org/boring+lectures)