In today's policy and political climate, where teacher quality is widely assumed to be the single most important influence on students' learning, viewpoints about where, when, and how people learn to teach are mixed. However, most teachers and teacher educators continue to believe that teachers learn how to teach over time. This article looks closely at two teachers who had very different experiences during their first year of teaching. Juxtaposing their experiences helps explain what it means to learn to teach over time. Conveying their experiences in the form of story illuminates the contradictions and tensions that are inherently part of this process. By contrasting the experiences of two new teachers, the author identifies key factors that make the difference between failure and success in the profession. (Contains 2 figures.)