Free Lunch!

 When I teach in San Francisco I usually teach at San Francisco State University. When I teach there the closest place to eat is Subway. Students often joke about me always eating at Subway. Sometimes go to other places, further away, but I like to stay close so I can relax rather than worry about parking when I return. I like Subway, it helps me loose weight and it is healthy and fast. I always ask my students to come with me for lunch, I think it is good for them to be able to ask personal questions about their future and it helps me know what specific things I can do during class to help each student. I have taught over 30 weekend classes and many times I eat lunch alone. Some classes eat together, but more classes eat separately. They do better if they spend lunch time together and get to know each other outside of the classroom.  This class is only 4 and one student has her fiance waiting around all day while she is at class. The other three students of the class have lunch with me.

 They really are fun and each is really different from the other. Yesterday I was getting my sandwich and one of the students just got a drink and was in front of me. As I brought my sandwich to the cashier the student said he would pay for my lunch. I have never had that happen before. I don't encourage that because I feel uncomfortable with other people paying for me. I said thank you to him and I really meant it. I really like the students in this class and I felt it would be childish of me not to allow him to pay for my meal. I want to make sure students don't feel they are obligated to buy me lunch and that is not why I ask them to eat with me. Sometimes I pay for their lunch, and that makes me feel good to do things like that so I figure that makes them to also. Having him pay for my meal yesterday really made me feel good, Thanks Moe! Today we went to Subway again as a group and as I was walking up to pay for my meal the other man in the class was in front of me and he paid for my sandwich. It left me speechless, and very happy. He didn't know that someone paid for my lunch yesterday and I was so thankful for him to do it. Like I said, I know it makes me feel good and I know it makes them to feel good to do something for others. Mohammad is really a great guy. His job takes him around the world into very isolated places and he is taking the class because he often spends two weeks in the remote area and he wants to do things for the villages while he is there. What a great guy!