My mother-in-law forwarded this email to me and I’m not usually one that gets overly excited for forwarded emails but I stopped and took the time to read this one and I found that I really liked it and that it meant a lot to me. I hope you feel that you can make a difference in someone elses life like I did after reading it.
ONE OF THE BEST STORIES I’VE EVER HEARD!
As she stood in front of her 5th grade class on the very
first day of school, she told the children an untruth. Like
most teachers, she looked at her students and said that she
loved them all the same. However, that was impossible,
because there in the front row, slumped in his seat, was a
little boy named Teddy Stoddard
Mrs. Thompson had watched Teddy the year before and
noticed that he did not play well with the other children,
that his clothes were messy and that he constantly needed a
bath. In addition, Teddy could be unpleasant. It got to the
point where Mrs. Thompson would actually take delight in
marking his papers with a broad red pen, making bold
X’s and then putting a big “F” at the top of his papers.
At the school where Mrs. Thompson taught, she was
required to review each child’s past records and she
put Teddy’s off until last. However, when she reviewed
his file, she was in for a surprise.
Teddy’s first grade teacher wrote, “Teddy is a
bright 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, “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withdrawn and doesn’t show much interest in school.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 he sometimes sleeps in
class.”
By now, Mrs. Thompson realized the problem and she was
ashamed of herself. She felt even worse when her students
brought her Christmas presents, wrapped in beautiful
ribbons and bright paper, except for Teddy’s. His
present was clumsily wrapped in the heavy, brown paper that
he got from a 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 perfume. But she stifled the
children’s laughter when she exclaimed how pretty the
bracelet was, putting it on, and dabbing some of the
perfume on her wrist. Teddy Stoddard stayed after school
that day 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, writing and
arithmetic. Instead, she began to teach children. Mrs.
Thompson paid particular attention to Teddy. As she worked
with him, his mind seemed to come alive. The more she
encouraged him, the faster he responded. By the end of the
year, Teddy had become one of the smartest chil dren in the
class and, despite her lie that she would love all the
children the same, Teddy became one of her ”teacher’s pets..”
A year later, she found a note under her door, from
Teddy, telling her that she was the best teacher he ever
had in his whole life.
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 the best teacher he ever had in
life.
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 soon graduate from
college with the highest of honours. He assured Mrs.
Thompson that she was still the best and favourite teacher
he had ever had in his whole life.
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 the best and favourite teacher
he ever had. But now his name was a little longer…. The
letter was signed, Theodore F. Stoddard, MD.
The story does not end there. You see, there was yet
another letter that spring Teddy said he had met this girl
and was going to be married. He explained that his father
had died a couple of years ago and he was wondering if Mrs.
Thompson might agree to sit at the wedding in the place that
was usually reserved for the mother of the groom. Of course,
Mrs. Thompson did. And guess what? She wore that bracelet,
the one with several rhinestones missing. Moreover, she
made sure she was wearing the perfume that Teddy remembered
his mother wearing on their last Christmas together.
They hugged each other, and Dr. Stoddard whispered in
Mrs. Thompson’s ear, “Thank you Mrs. Thompson for
believing in me. Thank you so much for making me feel
important and showing me that I could make a
difference.”
Mrs. Thompson, with tears in her eyes, whispered back.
She said, “Teddy, you have it all wrong. You were the
one who taught me that I could make a difference. I
didn’t know how to teach until I met you.”
(For you that don’t know, Teddy Stoddard is the Dr.
at Iowa Methodist in Des Moines that has the Stoddard
Cancer Wing.)
Warm someone’s heart today. . . pass this along. I
love this story so very much, I cry every time I read it.
Just try to make a difference in someone’s life today?
tomorrow? just “do it”.
Random acts of kindness, I think they call it!
“Believe in Angels, then return the favour”
