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 does not show much
interest, and his home life will soon affect him if some steps are not 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Teddy’s fourth-grade teacher wrote, ‘Teddy is withdrawn and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 children 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 w ith
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. 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.’
Note: This
story by Elizabeth Silance Ballard was originally published in Home Life
Magazine in 1976 and became one of the most requested stories in the magazine’s
history. Ever since then, several versions of this story have circulated around
the Internet.
alltimeshortstories.com
