Physics and I did not get off to a good start. New to the school, I had few friends and was desperate to prove myself. My first test was just above a fail, and I was so humbled I considered dropping the course. Mr. J, my teacher, was the reason I stayed.

Quirky and funny, he spent a good chunk of the classes going on tangents about grade inflation, how he was participating in an aging study and how Tuscan bread had no salt. He had a fondness for Star Wars and had all sorts of merch, from a Yoda chia pet to a Darth Vader toaster. My favorite was his Chewbacca mug, though. He would hold it up and grin, “It’s a special mug. It tastes chewy.” We would roll our eyes and snort.

His classroom was my sanctuary. I would stay there long after class ended, going over problems with my classmates until the sky was streaked with red. I made some long-lasting friendships commiserating over lab reports, while he sipped coffee and smiled.

Even though the material was tough, his lessons were fun and soon became the class I was looking forward to all day. He never made any of us feel unwelcome, dumb or unworthy of his time. His friendly, open demeanor made him one of the student favorites, from squeaky freshmen to jaded seniors.

His labs and demos were an integral part of the experience. For our first lab, he dropped eggs from the window– we were on the second floor– onto a volunteer. He made us record the height of the drop, the length of the fall, and asked us to find the acceleration. For our Momentum unit, he procured an airtrack and two gliders and made us collide the gliders to see if the Law of Conservation of Momentum was true.

His test questions were hilarious, providing much-needed humor during stressful times. The silence would often be broken by an incredulous giggle as someone read an amusing question. He allowed food during tests, so I brought cup-noodles and milk candy and made drinks with his Star Wars coffeemaker. He had instant coffee and a wide selection of teas, all free to use.

Under his guidance, I truly started to understand how Physics worked. I always wondered why we had to use specific formulas, and he explained why, making us derive the formulas ourselves and truly ingraining them in our minds. I started to dream about free-body diagrams!

At the end of the day, not only have I learnt Physics, I have also learnt how to take down a challenge. I learnt how to persist, how to study well, how to collaborate with classmates. Much of it is owed to Mr. J, who supported me through it all, being endlessly patient and staying back even when the sky got dark.

So thank you, Mr. J. You may not realize how much of an impact you have on students, but you’re doing amazing work.