Custodial Respect vs. Reality
This is something that goes back to a personal conversation that I had with a custodian at my high school.
This topic was brought up through our conversation about how some students had broken the faucets in the bathroom and flooded it. First of all it is so disrespectful that students would treat any school the way that they do. Second of all those custodians have to clean up those messes that the students make. “Your messes that you could have made,” but we constantly don’t think that those messes exist or that we didn’t make them. For example when a teacher comes up and asks you, “Did you make that mess or did you spill that.
” Some students would say, “Who me?!? No I would never.” even though that you actually did. But did you ever think about how every morning we walk into a nice and clean school. I don’t think that the many of us that attend school realize that. Then at the end of the school day the custodians come in and clean the schools over night.
Do you ever think that custodians would like just a little bit of a break, because all they do is clean up the things we drop on the floor (etc.). But back to when I was talking to this custodian she said that, “it’s disgusting the things that I see and have to clean up in both the boy’s and girl’s bathrooms.” Like how hard is it for a students to go into the bathroom and do their business and come out. But instead of students just going into the bathroom to do their business they think its right to go into the bathrooms and trash it.
For example when I walk into the bathroom I pick up that paper towels left on the floor because I know that the custodians really don’t want to spend their time picking up trash when they have more important things they could be doing like waxing the floor (etc.). But I will go into the bathroom to do my business and I will see writing on the wall in permanent ink, or wet paper towels on the ceiling. Like is that honestly necessary for students to trash bathrooms like that. The custodian also said that the bathrooms are the most disgustingroom in the whole school for reasons I am not going to go into, but its just common sense. She also said, “The girls bathroom isn’t any better with girls putting makeup in the grout of the tiles and that’s a pain the clean out.
” Is there any reason for girls to being doing that. First off why would you want to do that because I know that just from word of ear makeup is very expensive so why would you want to ruin it. But that just goes to show you that custodians have to take extra time cleaning that unneeded mess that you made in the bathroom I think in general we under appreciate custodians for what they do because they clean up after our mess. Imagine if school custodians weren’t there what would your school look like then, “trashy” thats right. Would you really like to go to a trashy school I don’t think so I wouldn’t. Custodians do the dirty work that work that we don’t wanna do.
Does that mean that we should make their jobs harder by throwing trash on the ground and making messes in the bathrooms. Honestly have you ever once said, “thanks” or “thank you.” to a custodian. Not many of us do thank custodians I feel like they should be more appreciated. For example schools should have a Custodian Appreciation Week because of the amount of things that we do. I think that they would be happy just to even get a,” Hey! Thanks for keeping our school clean.
” But put yourself in their shoes would you really want to be cleaning up messes that other students make just for their own personal being I wouldn’t wanna clean it up so then why would you make the mess? Think about that the next time that next time before you miss the trash can and don’t pick up the paper, or even writing something on the bathroom wall. But next time that you see a custodian tell them, “Hey thanks for everything that you do.” Don’t be that person to make the mess. If you do see paper on the floor pick it up and throw it away, because I am sure that picking up that one piece of paper probably saves them quite a bit of time. So don’t under appreciate them, appreciate them for the things that they do for your schools by keeping your school clean every single day.
