Counselor????

This past week in one of my my classes we had a few minutes to chat before the bell rang to dismiss class and a student brought up the topic of colleges and a possible route he should take. After a few minutes of explaining possible routes and options one of my students asked me out loud, "Mr ........... have you ever considered being a counselor because I know you would be really good at it." After the student said that about five students said something similar to "I was thinking the same thing." "I think so because Mr. .......... takes the time to listen to you and breaks down a situation." I can't tell you how good that made me feel because I made a promise to myself to make sure I was making an impact in both inside and outside of the classroom. Another example that made me feel good was when I talked to a parent of one of my students earlier in the week and her father said that she always wanted to become a doctor. What made me feel good was her Dad said, "Even though she has always expressed interest of being a doctor, ever since she has taken your broadcasting class, she wants to become a reporter now." I had no idea I made an impact like that on her, when a student wants to change her entire career dream just by taking my class, you can't beat that! I can't always say that I wanted to be a teacher but from the response of that discussion, and the way my students tell me how good of a counselor I would be, I couldn't help but to think, "This is why I became a teacher, this is why I do this everyday."