McKenna Quirk and Cindy Arnott

00:00 McKenna Quirk, I'm 18 years old. Today is Wednesday, June 24th, 2020. I'm in Missoula Montana with my teacher and Mentor missed Cindy arnott.

00:15 Hi, I'm Cindy. Arnott. I am 50 years old and today is Wednesday, June 24th, 2020. We are in Missoula Montana. And today I get to have a conversation with McKenna Quirk who is my student as well as a young lady. I've known for a long talk to her horse interest and activities that we do.

00:40 So Miss Arnold, I do have some questions breakdown for you. So I know teaching means a lot to you. So I was wondering if you could tell me about your first day as a teacher.

00:56 My very first day as a real teacher was in Miles City Montana and that school board had decided in August that they had enough money to hire a second act Teeter. So it was kind of a rushed decision and arrest hiring. So the very first day of class the students came in expecting to have mr. Larson for their teacher or mr. Larson and I were both there and we just counted 1212 and all the ones stay with mr. Larson and all the tools came with me and it was you know, it was kind of hard. I think some of the kids were everyone was nice, but some were very disappointed cuz they were expecting. Mr. Larson. And then there I was we were both teaching the same thing at the same time. So we both had buy one at the same time. We both had a report the same time. So it was very hard to have any of my own identity.

01:55 I'm scared to death. I was 22. I was scared to death.

02:03 McKenna let me ask you a question.

02:08 Imagine yourself at the beginning of your freshman year in high school. What if I would you give your 14 year old stuff?

02:22 I would say that is kind of a tough question because I was really hard to give advice to as a fourteen-year-old. I really felt like I had a pretty much figured out and I thought I knew what I wanted to do when I grew up. I thought I knew but my high school experience is going to be like I had everything planned out planned out like two a tea. So if I could give myself some advice I would tell myself to be open to changes and be open to trying new things and it's okay. If your plan doesn't go the way you thought it would cuz one example being, you know, I thought that I would be showing my horse all through high school because I'm not going to lie. I thought that I would be doing I didn't think I would be doing.

03:16 Do freshman year ended up being really tough? Just because I thought I would I was freaking out a little bit because my plan didn't go. Well it all got. So I just tell myself to just remain open and what the plan.

03:40 If you could talk to your students and like tell them about how would you like to how you would like to be remembered? How would you like your students to Remember You?

03:54 Well, I'll probably cry a lot during the center here just because that's who I am I get too emotional when I talk I think I would hope that my students.

04:13 I hope that they know I cared about him and that

04:25 Ask me that question again.

04:30 You alright. No worries.

04:36 So, how would you like your students? Do you remember you?

04:43 I hope that my students remember that I care about them and that once they're one of my kids. They're always my kids. So whether they're 14 or 18 or 28 come back and check in or get support if they need support.

05:08 All right. What is one of your most difficult memories?

05:23 Do I feel like personally I'm a pretty lucky doubt. I haven't had two too many difficult time in my life. Nothing to to extreme. But I think if I had to think of a time that was most difficult for me, it would probably be when I first moved here to Missoula. I moved here in sixth grade and I was just experiencing a lot of new things. I've lived in a really really small town before so I didn't know anyone that wears me initially because you know in Wyoming where I was living everyone knew everyone everyone was basically related to everyone when I came here felt like I was living in the city and I was you know going to a middle school where they really focus on Spanish Immersion. I never taken a spin class before

06:23 Something in to the deep end in Spanish. So that was really scary. But I think what made it more manageable was that I was able to join a 4-H club and I was able to meet you and Natalie because with that I felt like I was bringing a little bit of my community and my home that I had in Wyoming which was my 4-H club back to Martina and I found a little for each family and I found folks that were really interested in riding horses. So if that made it a lot easier, but I was so nervous and was trying to process so many new things that that was a pretty stressful time, but you guys made it weigh like beer.

07:15 All right. I'm going to ask you a question. I haven't written down yet, but I always think so. I think a lot of times that kids like you said you had this planned for what high school was going to look like you are you're someone who always presents yourself as very positive and very bubbly and you know, you're not someone who exhibits a lot of teenage angst all the time and you think about a movie of let you know Beverly Hills 90210 high school supposed to look like

07:56 Play how high school with different user in a positive way or a negative way. And what would you say to other kids about getting through social part of high school?

08:13 That is a good question. I feel like with my with the social aspect of high school. I actually a kid who didn't have my social life really revolves around my extracurriculars, you know, I had my Orchestra rehearsals and you do the same and more years. I was busy with that to True Life. My social life happened. I think on those beats Reiner buses driving to and from different banks across the state. So I think if I talk to a kid about high school and their High School social life, I would want them to think about it as something that's always happening, but that makes sense. I wouldn't

09:10 Recommend that a kid know who won class mode during the day only be focusing on their classes and not go out and during the day, you know, go get tacos with friends or stay after school for a little bit to talk to a friend about, you know, something is going on in their life or talk about a book that you're both reading because with me all of those little moments that I was able to have like in the lunchroom running back and forth from club meetings with my friends to the you know, the time before orchestra concert started when we were just talking I would tell kids to just always be really aware in those moments and really have think of those is really special times that you get to spend that in order to have a quote-unquote socializing High School. You don't have to go 15 million tardies or

10:09 Joint, or you don't have to go to parties. You don't have to go out in the woods and do stuff with your friends that you can instead make every moment with your friend. So another question when and why did you decide to become a teacher?

10:32 Well, I when I was in eighth grade, we had these kids come and talk to us about classes. We could take in high school and they talked about boag what we called it then I got and so I took it because I was pretty sure I was going to find some cute cowboy in the program but I got there and you know, I've never been an athlete I've never I mean I did throw shot put in middle school. I played in Orchestra, but it was

11:16 Never a passion for me, like I enjoyed it, but it was never a passion and I'm always a good student but not you know, not the number one student and I don't know. Why does it never found? I always felt.

11:31 Like I hadn't I don't know that it wasn't important that I didn't have talent I think and I mean I wasn't sad or depressed but I just never felt special I guess and then when I got into I'm awake my advisor. His name was Mike Havey just I don't know. I think I was willing but I just always felt like he believed in me. And the first thing I went dead was the livestock judging contest in Deer Lodge and mr. Andrews his now. My teaching partner is 3 years older than I am so during that contest I just followed him around and whatever he did. I did, you know, if you step back and look I stepped back from lunch. I said I text her like I kind of followed the first place green handed that contest that you're an ice. Where was the first time I've ever been like like I ever felt like, oh I'm special at like that was my like

12:31 I'm not feeling I guess As I Grew and started trying to decide what I wanted to do with my life. I wanted to be able to make that happen for other people.

12:46 To make those opportunities available for them into any know everyone that opportunity might come in or castara might come in track or it might come in a decameter. I just every high school kid needs a home in the high school. And so I wanted to be a part of making that home for those kids who needed it. And I also I mean I just love agriculture. I've always felt like I was born a hundred or hundred fifty years too late that I would have loved to have been a Pioneer and I am and I love the smell of new grass. I've actually been really struggling this week cuz they started cutting. Hay and I didn't get the cash and I get ridiculously excited. Like I left heading k, I love having babies. I mean again, I have the last 10 days weren't my days to work. I supposed to be off for the last 10 days and I did work when I tried it a day with another teacher, but I've been at the farm every day.

13:46 I love you. I mean, it just speaks to my soul alight painting sticks to you know, everything about it and I just fixed my phone and I want to be able to share that with other people.

14:04 And I'm bossy. That makes me a good teacher.

14:08 Okay, what is it that you possess that you're proud of?

14:21 Well, I think this is going to be a really dirty and because at heart I am definitely a nerd I love being organized. I love my notebook. I love color coding things. I think it's really fun. So I think a trait that I have that I am really proud of is my organizational skills, especially as a high school or is it kind of funny? Actually when I was in Middle School, I got my first academic planner like my week planner that has a little month's calendar in it and the birthday thing where you can write down your homework assignments and when you have a horse show or stuff like that and I've kept every single one of my planners because not only do I think it captures, you know what I was doing in that year, but I also just love the idea of having my life organized in that little planner like, you know, I always take my planner to offer chapter officer meetings. If I don't have it with me I feel

15:21 Naked like I always need my planner and I always need to be organized especially with like stay off their stuff starting this summer. I've been kind of making I haven't been able to stop myself like this for making little a dentist for a meeting like even if it's just a casual first time. I have a little agenda pulled up that says can I take notes on anything that we talked about? So I think I'm really proud that I am able to help people on stay organized whether it's on a team with my picture off the state officer team or and I'm also just proud that I'm able to take care of myself. It gives me a lot of confidence especially growing is a college that makes me feel really confident that I'll be able to stay.

16:12 And a half another question for you. Let me see if you had to pick one FFA memory as your favorite. What would it be to be from anytime as a teacher as a member?

16:31 That is very hard for me because that were talking about 35 years of my life.

16:47 I think about give me just a minute to give you a really amazing answer.

16:57 I guess that this is going to sound.

17:05 Probably the one that's the most meaningful for me and it's actually a kind of sadness.

17:17 2 years ago 3 years ago when we are at John Deere AG days. I one of my students grandparents died and

17:28 It was just it was very tough. His grandpa was I mean, they live next door to his grandpa and ran cows together and you know his grandpa just meant everything in the world to him. His grandpa was definitely his best friend and I miss Grandpa was so proud of him and everything he did and then very unexpected very sudden heart attack and his Grandpa died. So his mom called me and we are in the dance and she was wanting to hopefully have him not know until he got home. They wanted him to stay they wanted him to compete and they wanted to tell him the next day when we got home on the bus but social media being what it is someone posted something and he saw it during the dance in just the events that

18:18 Unfolded that night.

18:22 He was so hurt. And so, you know, it's just really hard and it was it was just heartbreaking. I was so glad that I could be there for him.

18:36 And that he wasn't alone but I also was so proud of everybody that we had with us, you know, we probably at 45 kids with us and every single one of them.

18:50 Offered him support and comfort him and

18:58 That he was okay and the next morning I sat down with him again because you know, are you sure that you want to compete today? And we had an extra vehicle there so I can drive you home, you know, if you don't want to talk to you and you said no my grandma wouldn't want me to finish what I started.

19:17 So he competed in horse judging that day and he ended up 3rd and that's a big contest and he did so well, and I was just you know.

19:28 Really proud of him

19:31 I'm really proud of everybody who it is. We were such a family and that woman and that's you know, everything teaches us lots of amazing things and gives us lots of amazing opportunities, but it really provides that extended.

19:53 I think you're going to make me cry. I remember that.

19:58 Yeah, I'm sorry that I cry all the time. Don't apologize. You're supposed to I do it's you to picture.

20:10 Of what is happening 20 years from now like your life 20 years from now so you would be you know looking at the Jardin De 40.

20:21 Where would you painted that picture when you think it's going to be like?

20:27 What would you like it to be like?

20:31 I think

20:34 If everything goes the way I wanted to I will have already graduated from that school. So that would have already happened like a while for that and I was hopefully be either owning my own practice and running that or be a partner in a practice somewhere and the more I think about it the more I feel like I don't know where I'm actually going to get get like place or end up as a vet. I think I definitely will have by that time already worked, you know in a more rural setting probably works in Montana a little bit and potentially in Wyoming or Idaho somewhere really cuz that's always kind of what I wanted to do. I want to be that you can call me anytime kind of bet that will come out and help you with anything you need.

21:34 Your horses large animal all that good stuff. So I will have already done that. And so I think I would send that I would have my own practice there be a partner in my own practice. I kind of be able to manage my own schedule a little bit. Hopefully I would have some horses that I could sell with my kids. I think that sounds like such easy goal to have or dreams have but I know that horse showing for me has been so important and so transformative and it's really taught me all that good stuff about hard work dedication how practice can really end up turning into success. I really really want my kids if I end up having kids to have that same experience. So hopefully I would have at least three horses a big trailer that I can call on the weekend and hopefully whoever married to is okay with having that many horses and having that big of a trailer

22:34 But I think that would be that would be what I would want to do and I would want to make sure that if I do have kids that I would be supporting them and all the same ways that my mom has supported me and that you have also spread me so much as well. So I would make sure then I would probably be one of those helicopter mom super involved invested in the success of my family. So that's what I picture. I feel like that's what's most likely to happen. But if that changes that's okay if my goals changed during college, that's okay cuz I can also see myself working at a big lab somewhere doing research. Yeah, especially with all the covid-19 stuff going on. I think veterinarians are still valuable and all the research that we're doing to try and manage these disease spillovers, like what's happened with Coby, so I think I could see both of them.

23:34 Teachers the future has a large animal vet with the family or working intensively in a lab on Research.

23:44 And who's going to manage your back clinic for you?

23:47 You are made this agreement.

23:58 I have another question for you.

24:05 This one is actually what I'm just thinking of when did you but did you know they're out at that day and throughout high school that you were going to run for State office, or was it a more of a spur-of-the-moment decision? What was your thought process and decided to run for a Montana?

24:28 Well, that's a good question. So I had a freshman and then mr. McClure came my sophomore year and he was my advisor myself more through senior year and he was a crazy guy. He still is a crazy guy, but

24:51 Am I at the end of my junior year Mr. McLaren? I had some really hard moments together and I didn't get a chapter office for my senior year. I've been the secretary for two years and then I didn't get a chapter office my senior year and I felt like that pretty much doomed me from being a state officer or going on to do anything more. I

25:18 You know what? I said my 17 year old self really felt ill used in the situation that I had been treated very poorly. My 50 year old self can look back on it and realize that I was sassy and had a mouth and sometimes I you know, I would think I was joking but other people wouldn't take it that way and that my way of I struggle with feeling included a lot of times. I feel excluded, you know, and like in my head I can tell myself that hey everybody went out for ice cream and they didn't say, you know, it wasn't a plan not to invite me. They didn't invite me on purpose. I just wasn't there but my heart feels like they're all sitting there laughing about me cuz I didn't invite me to go for ice cream, you know, and so that's just my own little insecurity that I deal with all

26:18 What time I still struggle with it as a grown up and working with my peers and stuff. But I do know the first the first thing is self-awareness. So when you know what you can do with it better, but it's 17 Mi away is of being important or feeling like I was valuable was being important to what was going on. And so I would overstep those boundaries sometimes between an adult and he reacted emotionally to me one day and then my feelings were hurt and I could not get over it and I got sassier probably that's what led to the downfall. I didn't quit though and I kept going and you know, I stuck with it through my senior year. I applied for my state degree and I had decided as a freshman that I wanted to be an egg teacher when I grew up so I but I felt like something was my chapter officer. There was no way that you stayed officer, so I didn't run I went

27:18 College my roommate was a state officer in my freshman year in college and I think watching her and watching her team I felt like that was an experience that I wanted and that there were things that I wanted or I had hoped or I had envisioned as a state officer that I am wanted to be a part of so I went ahead and ran at the end of my freshman year and it would say that by then I had really healed my relationship with my advisor and I don't think we ever quit caring about each other. We still cared about each other. I think that if he could go back and redo some of the things he would have and definitely I would have but I learned and I grew and you know, it was probably what I needed in the moment.

28:10 So then when I did get my state office, I mean certainly there had been kids who ran twice and got State offices before me it wasn't as common as it is now to run twice and get your so and I didn't run twice. I was just old right at the end of my freshman year in college when I got it. So I guess that kind of defined my heart on the team because I was the I was the older wiser one, you know who knew about college and so I was kind of the mama bear on our team and I love my team. I still have my team I'm in in touch with eight of the ten of us are Facebook friends and you know, it's still talk and check in with each other and stuff. So and we we we lost touch for a while, but it was saying the last five years we've definitely if you do have gotten to a point in our lives were reaching out to each other.

29:09 State officer, then I felt like that opportunity was taken away and you know in hindsight I would have given myself other advice at that time, but I think the year of mentoring for Iran help me get it, you know, and I'm definitely glad I chose to do it.

29:27 All right wrong. Answer. I have no short answers about anything.

29:33 When was the last time you cried and why?

29:42 What Glee that's pretty easy question because I cried yesterday, I think.

29:49 The reason I cried was because I was why was really stressed out about this has been you know, my online orientation week for college and I was trying to figure out which classes I want to take and I think whenever I don't know what to do about something I always resort to asking people, you know what their advice is. So I've been emailing a lot of kids that are on my same path you they're doing the pre vet track. They're doing the microbiology major all that good stuff. I've been trying to gather as much information as I can and I think I was just reading all those emails yesterday and I got a little overwhelmed and I think that's usually why I

30:37 Cry or get upset if usually when I feel like things are going as planned or I don't know what the answer is or I can't seem to figure out a problem by myself. That's my dad will definitely back me up on that whenever I feel like I don't have an answer to a problem or I don't feel like I have a good answer for the situation of the circumstances that I'm in it. I kind of just get really nervous for a little bit and then those nerves build up and I I cry a little bit but then usually after that I get better I reorient myself. So that's what happened yesterday. But let's see, I think luckily though this summer in particular they have been way more like tears of joy rather than two years of stress, which is surprising considering the world situation hour and right now, but you know when I got my state

31:37 I cried happy tears when I graduated and when we came home I cry happy tears that was so you know, I was I was proud of myself. I was proud of my friends and so I was happy about that too was bittersweet but it was more happy tears been said. So I think in that respect, I've been pretty lucky that this summer in these past couple months haven't been too stressful or too upsetting or too difficult. I'm really lucky enough respect. Okay, McKenna, so

32:19 First of all

32:24 You are an amazing kid.

32:28 And I'm always like I am inspired by you your work. Ethic is just

32:38 So above and beyond the typical work ethic ready and that organization and I mean you're just on top of it all the time and it's just it's so impressive and it's inspiring right like man if I can incorporate some of those skills into my life. I wish more to like, I'm so impressed by you.

33:00 And

33:03 The fact that

33:05 We have an extra special relationship right not just a teacher-student relationship with known each other for a long time, but it's kind of a mutual admiration that you feel like that about when I want to know is what advice would you give me?

33:38 Help me move forward.

33:41 That is a really tough question.

33:45 You definitely going to get me in a crap. It's so funny to be put in this position because I feel like with teachers, you know, we are always asking for your

34:00 It's really new and interesting to have the tables turned.

34:05 OG I think if I could give you any advice it would be to try to continue as wonderful as you are you are so good at being really true to yourself and following your passion and sharing that passion and kindness and compassion.

34:29 But everyone around you.

34:33 So I would say as long as you keep feeling that you're going to be.

34:38 Just as amazing as you've always been and you're going to inspire kids like me everyday.

34:46 So that would be my advice.

34:54 Arnott

34:58 We're very bad at their school distance.

35:03 Oh man, that is a good question.

35:07 I need turn it around on you real quick. But advice would you give me as I go on and I'm not going to be in your class remember day thanks to social media. We can still talk to each other as often as you need to leave my daughter so she'll be there too. So I would say to you first of all, I never doubt yourself because you are absolutely amazing and you go into every situation the most prepared person because of that amazing work ethic and your organizational skills, like you, you know, I'm incredibly intelligence in your wrist that work ethic and that preparation that puts you ahead of your pee all the time, but

36:07 Is to be nice to yourself.

36:13 You know you you are amazing and it's okay. It's okay to stop and catch a breath and it's okay to send a priority and say this is my my energies going the fact that I'm going to take an A minus here is okay cuz I'm trying to sell some slack some time is the race. If you wear yourself out in the first part of it, you got to take care of yourself and know that I'm always here.

37:04 All right.

37:18 I've got a really good question for you.

37:23 You have an amazing younger brother named Colton who is the best sleight-of-hand card trick magician that I know he is like you very talented hardworking and very I want to know what are you going to miss the most about open when you are in college?

37:51 That is a really good question. I haven't given that a ton of thought. Oh man on a practical level G is my compulsory math tutor. So he's a very talented mathematician. So I'm going to I'm going to miss his help in college, but I think what I'm going to miss most about him is sometimes we get into these really heated discussion about movie theories or music or magic stuff agriculture. He's always a really good sounding for it and he's so good at keeping up the engaging discussion and that's what's so great about having a younger brother. Like you said who still engaged with the world and it is so unique he is so fun to talk to

38:46 So I think every once in awhile, I'm going to have to give Colton the call and you do bring up some contentious issue about Star Wars so that we can discuss it for a good 40 minutes should we usually have those intense discussions every week. So I'm going to miss that but luckily he's a phone call away. I'm probably going to drag him up to go skiing with me and those with him. So I think that's what I'll miss most about cooking.