2 posts tagged “beloved teachers”
My acquaintance had called me early in the morning to tell me she wouldn’t tell me the name of Junior’s new teacher. What really mattered to me, though, was what people thought of this teacher. They said she was highly structured, more interested in students learning than impressing the world, determined to be the authority in her room, and intense. Oh, so very, very intense.
It all sounded pretty reasonable to me, and we sent Junior off to second grade with a kiss, hug, and prayer.
But there were concerns. First, this teacher had an unusual name, Her Royal Highness, the Princess of School. Secondly, the yearbook featured her wearing a college hat, so maybe she was too highbrow for our family. Thirdly, she drove a convertible which was significantly cooler than our gargantuan conversion van. I decided that it just didn't look good for my girl.
Successful prognosticator I am not. It has now been five years since Junior completed second grade, and to this day, HRH, the Princess of School, remains her most beloved teacher.
Back to my mom’s advice:
Study the people to whom your children are drawn and show love. It will reveal volumes about who your children are.
Junior has worked with other talented teachers. She has worked with other kind teachers. She has worked with other fun teachers. Why, then, did the Princess capture her heart?
Maybe it was that this very organized teacher provided structure, and her students and their parents knew what to expect each day. The parents who did read the newsletters and notes told me they were really quite helpful.
Maybe it was that this curious, exceptionally intelligent teacher knew a lot about a lot, and brought those interests to her students. Junior learned about matryoshka dolls, sports, shells, the Internet, and much, much more.
Maybe it was that this artistic, creative teacher, an award-winning quilter, taught her students about her favorite authors and illustrators and encouraged students and their parents to discover their own favorites.
Or maybe it was that this teacher with a mother’s heart made school, in Junior’s words, “...just happy.”
My only complaint from that year is that the Princess missed a tremendous opportunity to enlighten her students to the joys of NASCAR. But we all have our foibles.
And what of the quilt? The only wall adornment in our house? Junior’s second grade self-portrait in quilted form was a gift from the Princess to our daughter. It arrived at a time when Junior needed to be reminded that she was of worth to a teacher.
If that were the only thing we knew of her, the Princess would have a very special place in our hearts. But how much more fortunate we are to have all the other reasons, too.
Let’s tour my walls. Here is a lovely picture of the newly painted living room. Pretty color, but … um…bare.
Here is the family room. It is actually green. It has been painted for one year. Pretty color, but… um… bare.
But wait. What’s that on the entryway wall?
Is that a quilt? Whose picture is that? How did something that creative get in this house??
To appreciate this quilt, we have to go back almost 13 years.
Junior was a really high maintenance baby. She had miserable colic and needed lots of soothing. She was my first baby, and boy oh boy, I was tired. I was without sleep, working in an unhappy job setting, and feeling like a failure as a mother. Then there was my coworker, Dee. No matter how fussy, how uncomfortable Junior was, Dee could pick her up, hold her close, whisper to her, and Junior would immediately be calm.
If a newborn could love, Junior loved Dee.
And I was jealous. I was the mom. So in a most mature fashion, I whined about my jealousy of Dee to my mom. What she offered was this invaluable insight:
Study the people to whom your children are drawn and show love. It will reveal volumes about who your children are.
The next few years went by in a mix of chaos and change and Junior moved along in the Flag current.
Then one August morning when Junior was 7 the phone rang just after 6. Pretending that I was already awake, I listened as an acquaintance said,
“I know who Junior’s teacher is going to be this year, but I’m not sure if I should tell you.”
She had called at 6 in the morning to NOT tell me who the teacher was. Was that a good sign? A bad sign? What would become of my precious Junior?
And what about that quilt? Is this story ever going to end?
I’m sorry. Weeks ago I agreed to participate in a cookie exchange scheduled for tomorrow and I have no cookies, no ingredients for cookies, and no recipe. We also have a couple of wilted Flags home today. So I am going to stop writing, hunt down someone’s Halloween candy stash and feel sorry for myself. I’ll be back next week, a bit heavier but with the rest of the story…
