[ computer typing ]
♪♪
-To me,
the act of writing is about grasping detail,
because out of details comes a picture
and picture comes alive
if those details capture something very vivid.
[ computer typing ]
-Ron Chu has always considered himself
a writer, as a journalist, editor, author, poet,
even as an executive director.
Engaging others through creative expression
is always at the heart of what he does.
-Writing was kind of a theme.
I loved writing, and it was at the core of
the skill set that I used to move my career forward.
♪♪
-So when Ron decided to start writing his memoir,
he wondered, “Where did that initial spark come from?”
♪♪
-I tried to go to the core of what shaped who I became,
and one of the pieces of that was this teacher
named Miss Allen at Franklin High School.
-I'm Alice Allen, and I had the honor
of being Ron Chu's creative writing teacher.
I began with a contact with Franklin,
and they were looking for teachers of color.
They were very limited.
♪♪
There weren’t very
many people of color in Seattle, period.
♪♪
[ laughter ]
It was a time of revolution.
And the kids,
they knew very few Black
people and almost none from the South.
-They were trying to diversify the staff.
So you noticed that happening.
But to me, Ms. Allen
was she was a good teacher.
She did have a big afro. I remember that.
-Sometimes it’ll be big and sometimes it'll be short.
And when I would change the cut,
some boys in my class, these white boys
would throw spitballs at it at my hair.
This really happened.
They were very feisty.
They had just gained the freedom
to talk to teachers any way they wanted to.
I mean, they had that kind of freedom about themselves.
So, you know, they thought they knew everything.
And I thought I knew everything.
-In high school,
I had no clue of what I would pursue in college.
Creative writing,
it seemed like it was sort of easy.
-I was not an easy grader.
-It was my last year of high school, and I felt, well, even
if I fail,
you know, that's fine.
-One of Ron's first creative writing assignments:
to write a descriptive poem that uses all five senses.
-One of the things that made writing good was the reality
that it was able to project the pictures.
-It's really awful
now as I think about it.
It's a kid in high school trying to write, but it goes:
Open the door and walk out amid the moonlight, frosting
in the river through folded ripples of black night.
-Ohhh, boy. Moonlight frosting.
Oh! It’s like an aura across the river.
Oh my gosh.
-See the stars blink as they cannot find
shadows of their own.
-Oh! My gosh.
Ron, this is heavy. -To comfort and cradle
their light in a vat of tiny smiles.
-This is nothing that you can teach.
This is what you inspire.
You can't teach that.
-It goes on like that. But she
she gave me a good, good grade.
She gave me an A plus,
plus, plus.
-I gave him A plus, plus, plus! [ giggling ]
-For a teacher to respond
positively to a student had a huge impact on me.
-A teacher never knows really,
for his or her inspiration really stops.
You don’t know.
It's kind of like a homecoming.
All these folks I grew up with, worked with and friends.
It's pretty heartwarming.
It’s wild. Can't believe it.
Alice was an important part of my journey
to becoming a writer and creating this book.
Without her,
I would not have become a writer.
[ cheering and applause ]
-In 2020, Ron released his memoir
with his teacher, Alice Allen,
right in the middle of page 89.
It didn't take long for word to get back to Alice
that she was in Ron's book, and for once in Ron's life,
a picture spoke louder than words.
This photo
capturing the moment teacher and student were reunited.
-I was kind of excited to see, like, “What is Ms.
Allen look like now?”
I've lost my hair and I'm an old person... -And I'm on my cane.
Would you have known me?
-I would have recognized you right away.
Because your gestures haven't changed; those expressions;
the way you talk;
the way you enunciate; it was all coming back to me.
-I wanted to bring out of kids
all the things that I wanted to be.
I never in 30 years
went in there one day thinking it was just a job.
-One teacher can change a life.
That person's encouragement can can nudge somebody
forward in a way that can change your life.
♪♪
I am living example of that.
♪♪
Watched CityStream Tuesday nights
at seven on the Seattle Channel
or find us anytime online at SeattleChannel.org.