Señora Solomon has been teaching Spanish at Stuart for a very long time, and interviewing her was one of the most entertaining things I have ever done. Although I talk to Señora almost every morning, we usually discuss school-related topics. Now, I have learned that she is obsessed with knowing what’s happening in the world and watches the news every day after school. She also loves to paint with watercolor, and in the summer, she plants flowers but does not garden. 

Growing up, Señora lived with her grandmother. All of her father’s brothers were teachers and sports coaches, so every Sunday they would all get together to discuss the football and basketball games that had happened the day before. This caused her to have a slight dislike for sports but now she enjoys watching soccer.

Something that really surprised me was when Señora said she did not like Spanish when she was younger and did not want to speak it. This was because she felt her family did not fit in and she did not want to stand out. But, in highschool, Señora realized how important her culture and Spanish were and decided to study it. Additionally, after some travelling and living in Puerto Rico, she decided she needed to share the language and show people how important it is. She became very proud of her heritage and still is now.

One of the things I asked Señora if there was anything she wanted her students to know. She responded that she wants us to make our worlds bigger. She says we need to pay attention to what is happening around us in local, state, and world communities as she believes this is the only way to solve problems. She wants us to ask a lot of questions so that we can be informed enough to be interested in things other than ourselves. Señora says she hopes we will learn something that ignites passion in us and she believes stepping out of our comfort zones and always remaining curious will help us do that. Señora’s final piece of advice to me was, “Do not wish your time away, do not let life just happen to you, be an active participant and take advantage of everything you are offered.”

Finally, a fun fact about Señora: she was personally invited by the White House to President Kennedy’s inauguration because she was the head of an affinity group called Teens for Kennedy in middle school.