Here’s to the ones that stay up until 3am working. Here’s to the ones that wake up at 3am to work. Here’s to the ones that smile on their good days and bad days. Here's to the ones that teach till their voices crack. Here's to the ones that empower minds. Here's to the ones that shape young minds. Here's to the ones that change the world. Here's to all teachers out there!

Ordinary human beings with extraordinary superpowers that shaped our society into what we see today. Well, at least that's how I would define ‘Teachers’. They’re the unsung heros that work day after day to spark creativity, ignite young minds, bring them closer to their calling and empower them to change the world. Behind every great human achievement, there was a teacher that shone and burnt up to make the impossible possible.

Yes! Behind every Sachin Tendulkar there’s a Ramakant Achrekar, behind every Oprah Winfrey there’s a Mrs. Duncan behind, every Helen Keller there's an Anne Sullivan and behind every Plato there’s an Aristotle. The very fact that one might find the first set of names familiar but seem quite alien to the second set of names clearly portrays how teachers are patently unsung heroes in our society.

I’m sure all of us have had that one teacher that inspires and motivates you to propel yourself to greater heights. Personally, I’ve had multiple unsung heroes- be it a math teacher who hands out worksheets every now and then or a social studies teacher that teaches you with burning passion or an english teacher that values experimental learning over bookish values or a chemistry teacher who you can talk to like a friend or a french teacher who has the most amazing handwriting or a biology teacher who encourages and supports you in everything or a class teacher who is with you through your ups and downs. And in the end, it was the combined efforts put in by all of them that made me- Me.

What I think metaphors teachers best would be ‘lighthouses’- that send out beacons of light which signals and guides ships through rough seas. They're the ones that burn throughout the night to make sure the ships touch the shore safely. They're the lights that shine in the darkness, kindling glimmers of hope and life to the ones that are lost and weary and save many lives. But they're also the first ones to be forgotten when the ship reaches the shore safely.

Yes, you read it right. While everyone will be saying how teachers are the ones that guide them while they are going through their tough times, their peaks and valleys, their in and outs, history stands along with me when I say everyone of us have forgotten our lighthouses when we reached the shore! Teachers are the unsung heroes working behind the curtains for the play of our life to reach its zenith and where do all the credits go? Well, to the performers, the scientists, the cricketers, the speakers, the musicians and not to the coaches, the teachers, the instructors, the professors and the trainers.

Today, what I would like to convey to all the readers is to raise your voices and sing out your unsung heroes on this day. Every teacher, every professor, every coach, every instructor and every other lighthouse that led and guided you through the rough seas and molded you to become who you are today, Sing and Celebrate them.

Here's to the ones that brought me to the shore. Here's to the ones that lead me through turbulent seas. Here's to the ones that empowered me. Here's to the ones that changed me. Here's to the ones that shaped me. Here's to all my dear teachers out there!