Teaching Thousands, Feeling Invisible

I used to think teaching would mean connection. Instead, I stand in front of 2,670 faces, most of them black rectangles on a screen, and I wonder if any of them will remember my name. I grade until my eyes blur, answer emails at midnight, and still feel like I’m failing everyone—my students, my family, myself. Some days, I forget what my own voice sounds like. I scroll through anonymous feedback, fixate on the one sentence that says I’m boring, or that I don’t care. I do care. But caring doesn’t scale. I can’t be the mentor I wanted to be. I’m just another cog in the machine, and the machine is hungry. I keep telling myself it’s worth it. But tonight, I’m not sure I believe it. #AcademicBurnout #CollegeReality #InvisibleLabor #Education