I just got a comment that made me step back for a minute.
It came in about this post here
The comment from Anon. reads:
Jules,
Thanks for this blog. Ms. Dolphay (Ms. only because she was divorced) was also my teacher, many years after she retired. She was my grandmother and taught me many things; Greek and Norse mythology and the 8 parts of speech which I can still recite by heart. I thank you for your view and being able to peek in a window on her that a 10 year old never never could have seen. I also must agree that it is those who make you work the hardest and challenge yourself that you really appreciate.
(note: I put grandmother in bold myself to aid those of you skimming)
Wow, wow, wow....
First - thank you for the comment anon.
Secondly - if you remember reading the post you might know why I cringed at first. Here was a grandchild (of this teacher that I posted about) reading my post. If you don't recall the post- you may want to go back and read it... I mentioned some unfavorable memories about this person's relative. Yes, in the end I said she really did stand out as my favorite teacher, but it was only after I said things like she resembled a troll.
I was a bit flustered and embarrased really. But, then I stopped, thought, and felt better. I was NOT saying this woman WAS a troll, or any of the other things I mentioned. I said as a Jr. Higher I THOUGHT or HEARD these things. Obviously my commentor was able to make it through the post and get my true meaning. For that I am thankful.
But interesting isn't it. The ideas or the rumors we hear about a person initially - the ones that create our thoughts on that person don't always stand up in the end. First impressions are strong, where we are at in life matters (jr. high, middle of a divorce, not yet married, poor, or rich) it matters in how we see others. Yet, it is only wrong if in the end you stick to that perception. If you start seeing through those first impressions and mis-judgings yet you continue to hold the wrong opinion on others- that is when you are wrong.
Keep an open mind, take an interest in those who are not like you or your current group of friends, step outside your comfort zone, be curious. These are the only way we won't miss out on what others have to offer us.
And yes, even teachers that we think of as "the worst" may eventually be the one you find thinking of the best. Or your best friend may end up being the girl with the dyed black hair and lip ring.
Who have you misjudged?
p.s. (thank goodness blogs don't get graded. Ms. Dolphay would be shaking her head and clicking her tongue at me as she marked up this page in bright red :)
Showing posts with label memorize. Show all posts
Showing posts with label memorize. Show all posts
Saturday, December 26, 2009
Monday, October 12, 2009
Memory
Recovering from my third virus of the Fall season I am having a hard time getting my brain to kick in. What I decided to do was grab the dictionary next to the desk (which I have used a more now that I have started blogging than I ever did in school!) anyway.. focus... I grabbed the book and decided to write a blog post on what ever word I came across first. The word I opened to first was memory/memorize so, here I go... my post about the first word in the dictionary I saw.
Memorize - My worst teacher ever was named Mrs. Dolphay. She was my 8th grade English teacher. She looked quite similar to a troll. She ate in her classroom and paid students a quarter to take her tray down in the beginning of her next class. For some odd reason brown rice comes to mind when I think of her. This is something she ate often I believe. She also talked about brushing her teeth. She insisted that we brush our teeth for two minutes each day. Now coming from a troll we all laughed at her behind her back.
(oh to be such a rude jr. higher again- cut my wrists now!)
Everyone knew where she lived (on the other side of the lake) and we knew she drove a big conversion van. It was rumored she had a scrawny little boyfriend which made for some Jack Sprat jokes.
She was old by classification of an 8th grader, and I still believe I would find her old now as an adult. She had a reputation. She was "one of those teachers" . She was tough. As an adult now I would say that she had this reputation because she expected things out of you, you were to learn in her classroom. Something teachers had side stepped in the jr. high I attended.
We learned to conjugate sentences, what adjectives, prepositions and the likes of them were, along with examples that we were to memorize. Yep, good old fashion stand in front of the class and recite, rote memorization. Sadly, I remember very little. All I can still do is the beginning of the propositions-
about
above
among
around
along
at
because of
before
behind
below
beneath
and then I lose it..... Still impressive since this was 22+ years ago.
Yes, when I see the word memorize I remember Mrs. Dolphay (who probably was really a Ms.) Many years later I ran across a box in town that was giving prizes to local teachers, all you had to do was nominate your favorite teacher. I remember standing before the box and running through my past teachers like a slide show in my mind. There was my Kindergarten and First grade teachers (everyone loves them), definitely NOT my second grade teacher (she called me blabber mouth in front of the whole class, bad bad teacher) and so forth through the list. I finally landed on Ms. Dolphay - by all means she won my nomination. She had expectations and a love of learning, and although she was tough she was well meaning. As an adult now, I get her. I kind of think I always did.
Memorize - My worst teacher ever was named Mrs. Dolphay. She was my 8th grade English teacher. She looked quite similar to a troll. She ate in her classroom and paid students a quarter to take her tray down in the beginning of her next class. For some odd reason brown rice comes to mind when I think of her. This is something she ate often I believe. She also talked about brushing her teeth. She insisted that we brush our teeth for two minutes each day. Now coming from a troll we all laughed at her behind her back.
(oh to be such a rude jr. higher again- cut my wrists now!)
Everyone knew where she lived (on the other side of the lake) and we knew she drove a big conversion van. It was rumored she had a scrawny little boyfriend which made for some Jack Sprat jokes.
She was old by classification of an 8th grader, and I still believe I would find her old now as an adult. She had a reputation. She was "one of those teachers" . She was tough. As an adult now I would say that she had this reputation because she expected things out of you, you were to learn in her classroom. Something teachers had side stepped in the jr. high I attended.
We learned to conjugate sentences, what adjectives, prepositions and the likes of them were, along with examples that we were to memorize. Yep, good old fashion stand in front of the class and recite, rote memorization. Sadly, I remember very little. All I can still do is the beginning of the propositions-
about
above
among
around
along
at
because of
before
behind
below
beneath
and then I lose it..... Still impressive since this was 22+ years ago.
Yes, when I see the word memorize I remember Mrs. Dolphay (who probably was really a Ms.) Many years later I ran across a box in town that was giving prizes to local teachers, all you had to do was nominate your favorite teacher. I remember standing before the box and running through my past teachers like a slide show in my mind. There was my Kindergarten and First grade teachers (everyone loves them), definitely NOT my second grade teacher (she called me blabber mouth in front of the whole class, bad bad teacher) and so forth through the list. I finally landed on Ms. Dolphay - by all means she won my nomination. She had expectations and a love of learning, and although she was tough she was well meaning. As an adult now, I get her. I kind of think I always did.
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