Many of us have been duped at one point or another by those we believed were making friendly, supportive overtures.
That's just...gobsmacking. Turns my entire belief system upside-down.
It'll be a lot of fun (!) trying to figure out how to change my approach to one of "assume the worst." I just read From Emotions to Advocacy and haven't identified exactly where I went off track in my communication with everyone this year. I suspect it's mostly a matter of my failing to adjust to middle school. Just like my son!
OTOH--in the case of the art teacher, my gut feeling is we are dealing with someone with some personal pathology. His emails demonstrate a lack of self-control and self-awareness. There is some irony in that.
