In Summer Silence: Teacher Laura Tidies Workshop After First Year
New teacher Laura uses the quiet summer days to organize her workshop, reflecting on her first year which the article compares to being a glass cleaner in immense noise.
Two weeks after the end of the school year, the school stands quiet and empty. In the three-story Soviet-era building, the sounds of children's laughter and shouts have faded into silence. Amid this stillness, Laura, a teacher who has just completed her first year, has returned to tidy her workspace.
She works in the basement floor, in a brightly painted green corridor. One side of the hallway has windows facing the yard, the other opens to classrooms. From the workshop, soft jazz music emanates. Inside, workbenches are arranged in three rows, covered with abstract wooden faces and boards, bearing witness to extensive use. The tables are worn from the hands of many small and large workers.
The school building dates back to Soviet times and appears not to have undergone renovation since then. Time has taken its toll on the rooms. While waiting for journalists, Laura keeps herself busy removing dried glue from surfaces. She remarks that now, finally, there is time and peace to organize the workshop.
The article's title draws a parallel between a teacher's job and that of a glass cleaner in huge noise, yet the summer quiet offers a chance for meticulous work.
