Jean
Thompson stood in front of her fifth-grade class on the very
first
day of school in
the
fall and told the children a lie. Like most teachers,
she looked at her
pupils
and said that she loved them all the same, that
she would treat
them
all alike. And that was impossible because there
in
front of her,
slumped
in his seat on the third row, was a little boy named
Teddy
Stoddard.
Mrs. Thompson had watched Teddy the year before and noticed he
didn't
play well with the
other children, that his clothes were unkempt and that
he
constantly
needed a
bath. And Teddy was unpleasant. It got to the
point
during the first
few
months that she would actually take delight in
marking
his papers with a
broad
red pen, making bold X's and then marking the F
at
the top of the
paper
biggest of all.
Because Teddy was a sullen little boy, no one else seemed to enjoy
him,
either. At
the
school where Mrs. Thompson taught, she was required to
review
each child's
records
and put Teddy's off until last. When she opened
his
file, she was in
for
a surprise.
His first-grade
teacher wrote, "Teddy is a bright, inquisitive child
with a ready
laugh.
He does his work neatly and has good manners...he
is a joy to be
around."
His second-grade teacher wrote, "Teddy is an excellent student well-
liked
by his classmates,
but he is troubled because his mother has a
terminal
illness and life at
home must be a struggle."
His third-grade teacher wrote, "Teddy continues to work hard but
his
mother's death
has
been hard on him. He tries to do his best but his
father
doesn't show
much interest
and his home life will soon affect him if some steps aren't
taken."
Teddy's fourth-grade teacher wrote, "Teddy is withdrawn and doesn't
show
much interest in
school.
He doesn't have many friends and sometimes
sleeps
in class.
He
is tardy and could become a problem.
By now Mrs. Thompson realized the problem but Christmas was coming
fast.
It was all she
could
do, with the school play and all, until the day before
the holidays
began
and she was suddenly forced to focus on Teddy
Stoddard.
Her children brought her presents, all in beautiful ribbon and
bright
paper, except for
Teddy's,
which was clumsily wrapped in the heavy, brown
paper of a
scissored
grocery bag.
Mrs. Thompson took pains to open it in the middle of the other
presents.
Some of the
children
started to laugh when she found a rhinestone bracelet
with some of the
stones
missing, and a bottle that was one-quarter full of
cologne.
She
stifled the children's laughter when she ex-claimed how
pretty
the bracelet was,
putting
it on, and dabbing some of the perfume behind
the
other
wrist.
Teddy
Stoddard stayed behind just long enough to say, "Mrs.
Thompson,
today you
smelled just
like my mom used to." After the children
left
she cried for at
least
an hour. On that very day, she quit teaching
reading, and
writing,
and speaking. Instead, she began to teach
children.
Jean Thompson paid particular attention to one they all called
"Teddy."
As she worked
with
him, his mind seemed to come alive. The more
she
encouraged him,
the faster he responded.
On days there
would
be an important test, Mrs. Thompson
would
remember that
cologne.
By the end of the year he had become one of the smartest
children in the class and...well, he had also become the "pet"
of the teacher who had once vowed to love all of her children exactly
the same.
A year later she found a note under her door, from Teddy, telling
her
that of all the
teachers
he'd had in elementary school, she was his favorite.
Six years went by before she got another note from Teddy. He then
wrote
that he had
finished
high school, third in his class, and she was still
his
favorite teacher
of
all time.
Four years after that, she got another letter, saying
that while things
had been
tough
at times, he'd stayed in school, had stuck with it,
and
would
graduate
from college with the highest of honors. He
assured
Mrs.Thompson
she was
still his favorite teacher.
Then, four more years passed and yet another letter came. This time
he
explained that
after
he got his bachelor's degree, he decided to go a little
further.
The
letter explained that she was still his favorite teacher
but
that now his
name was
a little longer. The letter was signed,
Theodore F.
Stoddard,
MD.
The story doesn't end there. You see there was yet another letter
that
Spring.
Teddy
said he'd met this girl and was to be married. He
explained
that his father
had
died a couple of years ago and he was
wondering...well,
if Mrs.
Thompson might
agree to sit in the pew usually reserved for the
mother of the
groom.
And guess what, she wore that bracelet, the one
with
several
rhinestones
missing.
And I
bet on that special day, Jean Thompson smelled just like...
well,
just like the
way
Teddy remembered his mother smelling on their last
Christmas
together.
THE
MORAL:
You
never can
tell what type of impact you may make on another's life
by
your actions or
lack
of action. Consider this fact in your venture through
life.
from "Chicken
Soup
for the Soul"
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