It’s right after second period. Your next class is within spitting distance. You could drag yourself there in time if the floor was covered in mayonnaise. And yet, you are barely on time every day. Why? Your best bud Carlos is in the class next door. And you must discuss what crazy stuff you were up to this weekend (you say partying, when you were really crying over the demise of the Redskins).
Your teacher in third does not care at all, so what’s the point of being on time? Punctuality? An outdated practice. Living up to the image of being an Honor Student? Girl, please. But now there is a driving force, a man who is determined to get everyone to class on time. A man some may say is in over his head. No matter how many blank stares he gets through his whack comments, he will always preach his constant pleas to students to get to class on time. This man is Micah Wiggins, and he is filling in as an assistant principal.
Many are aware of his presence (at least among the late birds) and count me among those who appreciate his style. In the past you got a gentle but stern reminder, asking where your class was, and you meekly pointed down the hall. And then you kept walking.
Wiggins is the antithesis of this, a significant upgrade since he has been calling the shots. He has no-holds barred style; he will repeat over and over again that you “must get to class on time” or “time is money and money is power.” As I was walking towards a first period class of mine, he was jogging behind me. I was 79 percent sure at the time that he was following me to make sure I got to class on time. A personal favorite of mine was when he looked over at a couple giving a heartfelt goodbye for their 47 minutes of separation and he said to the girl, “We know you love him.” The “Greatest Hits” list goes on and on.
The ranting of this crazy man seemed to occur over night, right after assistant principal Nicole Morgan went on maternity leave. Some would think that maybe the increased ranking has gone to his head, Nixon-style, making him go all-out bonkers; that he is so thrilled to finally be in a position of power, and he is going to new, unnecessary lengths in order to take full advantage of his newfound responsibilities (well, at least until Ms. Morgan gets back). The people who would say this are cynics who have never had an interaction with him before. Mr. Wiggins has always been this crazy.
Mr. Wiggins knows how to entertain, but that shouldn’t reflect poorly on him. The only thing wrong with his methods is that it is not neccessarily going to stop tardiness, because it is just so darn fun to watch. He does care about kids being to class on time, but he knows that scaring them is not going to stop it. So he would rather use the hallway as a stage for his one-man show: “The Wonderful, Beautiful, Marvelous Mr. Wiggins.” While kids will always be late, now they will be running to class with a smile on their face, chuckling the day away.
