I've often been told not to judge a book by its cover. But I never really understood this until my sophomore year, when I had Mr. Poss for World Geography.

The summer before, I had seen him at the school a few times. I was surprised that he was allowed to be around kids or within 200 yards of a school! He drove a motorcycle, dressed like a thuggish biker, is 6Ƌ'' tall, and has an aura that screams “Stranger Danger!”

The day he introduced himself as my teacher I was petrified. Even though he was now dressed like a teacher, he still appeared dangerous. No one in my class knew what to expect from our biker teacher, and were on our best behavior due to the fact that we didn't want to die at the hands of this man/gorilla. But after three minutes I knew my first impression of Mr. Poss had been very wrong. This man loves his job, loves to be around teens, and loves God.

He quickly took charge of Student Council. Whenever someone was down, he was always there for him, and always had a smile for our class. His students loved his class as if it were recess.

Mr. Poss made learning fun and interesting. He knew exactly what to say to get teenagers' attention (such as revealing that Ben Franklin was a “pimp,” as he put it). His method of teaching was effective, and I always got A's in his class. And when he wasn't teaching, he supported the school by showing up to every football game and band competition.

Mr. Poss's devotion to his church is notable also. His fellowship hosted a biking event for charity. Bikers from all over came to his church to help raise funds for underprivileged children. Kids got to look at the bikes, sit on them, and pretend they were bikers too. When Mr. Poss told us about it, his eyes lit up and he swelled with excitement. It's obvious that his passion is helping and teaching kids.

Knowing Mr. Poss has left a deep impression on me. I learned that if you judge based on appearance only, you can miss out on something great. Thanks to Mr. Poss, I love World Geography, don't judge people, and realize that life isn't about money but pursuing the things you love. He's a teacher because he loves to help kids. The entire student body and faculty love Mr. Poss, and it's not hard to see why.