By Scott Shephard

This is a photo I took in 2007 and I liked it then and I liked it now. For me, this photo is evocative - not just of the experience of going to a local elementary school and taking photos of students and teachers working, but of other things as well.

Today, it evokes the memory of the teacher who helped me fall in love with books. How did she do that? She loved them, too, and was unabashed about her profession of love in front of a class of 9th grade history students. I wasn't much of a reader until the 9th grade and I am eternally grateful for this teacher for opening my eyes to a much richer and bigger world than the one surrounding me at Patrick Henry Junior High in Sioux Falls, SD, in the 1960s.

As school is about to start up again, I hope teachers realize the lasting impact they make on young minds. It took me a long time to realize that the things I said and did when I was a teacher, helped change lives in ways that were not tangible, in the same way my 9th grade history teacher changed mine.

Canon 5D 1/160s f/3.5 ISO640 120mm