Courtesy of Sarah Fiacco.
- Substitute teacher Sarah Fiacco, turned down a permanent role because she hated disciplining the kids.
- She was nervous about taking a job in the school cafeteria instead, as it seemed like a step-down.
- When a student wrote her a cute thank you note for lunch, the mom knew she’d made the right choice.
This as-told-to essay is based on a conversation with Sarah Fiacco. It has been edited for length and clarity.
I was a couple of weeks into my new job in the school cafeteria when a first-grader named Olivia approached me with a note.
“Mrs Fiacco, I’d just want you to have this,” she said, pressing the letter into my hand. She’d simply written, “Thank you for the lunch.”
I had to step away for a moment because it made me emotional. The note was so special and sweet. It felt like a prize — confirmation that I’d done the right thing by turning down a job as a teacher and becoming a lunch lady.