Stressed and tired.

Stressed and tired.

Only a little girl in elementary school, she was too young to detect any uneasiness that settled upon her parents. She was too young to comprehend that sometimes parents need to sacrifice their time to give their children a desirable life.

But she had noticed.

Every tiny change her parents displayed seemed drastic. Despite the fact that times were hectic and hard on her, she admired their dedication in everything that they did.

Sophomore Anna Loanzon knows what it’s like to have not only one parent as a teacher, but both. At a young age, her parents had already set their goal to earn their degrees in directing, which caused her to see their stress and struggle.

“When I was in fourth grade, my dad got his first job directing,” Loanzon said. “My mom started last year. As a kid I could tell they were stressed and tired a lot, and that definitely had an effect on me.”

Influenced by a family immersed in music, Loanzon joined the middle school band in sixth grade. But unlike others, she had a workload that was twice as difficult, and it felt unfair to her because music was something she wasn’t sure she wanted to pursue.

“I didn’t really choose to join band, my mom kind of made me, but I’m definitely glad she did. Sometimes I get in trouble if I don’t practice, and there’s quite an amount of pressure when it comes to being a band director’s kid,” Loanzon said. “Everyone expects you to know a lot, even though I don’t really know more than the next guy.”

Sometimes things can be rough, but there are many benefits to having her parents nearby. Whenever she needs them, they’re right around the corner ready to help.

“It’s nice to have my parents around for trips and whenever I forget to get them to sign something. I can easily just go to them or run up to the band hall for anything I need,” Loanzon said. “But it’s not so great sometimes, especially when they have to get onto one of their students.”

Loanzon believes that the relationship with your parents essentially determines how hard or easy it is to have them around at school.

“I’m really close to my parents. I spend a lot of time with them and I care about them a lot,” Loanzon said. “Some kids may not be as comfortable with having their parents around, so it may be harder on them. I enjoy having having my mom around because I trust and love her.”

Loanzon believes that kids in similar situations should be respectful towards their parents ,just like they would respect any other adult. They should cherish each and every moment with them because memories are something that you can never relive.

“Do not abuse the fact that your parents are there. I mean, we are in high school and we won’t be in the house very much longer,” Loanzon said. “We teenagers don’t realize how much we are going to miss our parents when we fly out of the nest.”

Having your family around at school can be extremely complicated, but because of that, it can help you to not take anything for granted and to create an even stronger family bond than before.  

“It’s definitely not easy having your family around at school. Being a teacher is just as–if not more–stressful than being a student,” Loanzon said. “Sometimes it can get hard and sometimes you can lose sleep, but it’s all going to be okay because everyone’s off during the summer.”