You Make Me Feel…

Posted by simpleysterling on Mar 18, 2010 | 1 comment

I’ve learned that people will forget what you said, people will forget what you did, but people will never forget how you made them feel. ~ Maya Angelou

Feelings – nothing more than feelings… too often in life we get so wrapped up in what WE want, what WE need, what is good for US and OURS that we forget that there is an entire world full of hurting people around us that could simply use a little bit of time, love and tenderness.  Corny? Perhaps…

I came from a very poor family.  How poor were we? We were poor in every meaning of the word; no money, no communication, no emotional bonding, no physical possessions, no love.  I was that little rag-a-muffin child who was always running around trying to please everyone, trying to get someone to pay attention to me, trying to fit in.  I had stringy, dirty hair, I rarely bathed, and I had a mouthful of rotten teeth…. Ewww!   I always worked really hard in school, because I loved the escape it provided me, yet because of my home life, I always felt like I struggled to fit in with the other kids and the teachers.  At the start of fourth grade, I was a serious gal with little hope yet big dreams.  And that was when I met the person who completely changed my life.

Mrs. Dolby was a grandmotherly-like teacher who smelled of baby powder, wore suits, and always had a string of pearls around her neck.  Stern, yet soft, she represented her profession well; she was perfect!  I was drawn to her from the very start, just as I had been all of my teachers, wanting them to be proud of me.  Yet something was different about Mrs. Dolby.  She looked me in the eye when she talked to me.  She touched my shoulder when she wanted my attention – and for a child who had never really experienced that warmth before on a regular basis, that was like heaven.  She made me want to work harder; she made me want to be better.

The first writing assignment I ever completed in her class was a poem.  I still remember every word, but I won’t bore you with the details.  I remember her taking me aside and asking my permission to read it to the class.  I was flabbergasted! And from that point on, Mrs. Dolby and I were, well, we were like peas and carrots.  I was the “teacher’s pet” and I didn’t care.   She submitted many of my stories and poems to the local paper.  She encouraged without ceasing.  But it was more than that.  She made me feel human. She hugged me every day before I got on the bus to go home.  Every day.  She looked at me, this dirty, smelly kid, and she saw me… she saw ME! 

We had a house fire that winter and had to move away; Mrs. Dolby was only my teacher for about five months, but what she did for me impacted me for a lifetime.  I had other teachers who were influential and who encouraged me, but none in the way that she did.  She saw the lovable in the unlovable; she saw hope in the hopeless; and I saw God in her.  Recently, I took a road trip and drove by that old school, which has since been abandoned, and I once again felt like that little girl.  And while I can’t tell you specific words that Mrs. Dolby and I shared, and I can’t tell you specifically all the things she did for me, I can tell you that I will never, ever forget how this special woman made me feel: Like I mattered.

As Christians, it is sometimes easier for us to write a check than it is for us to get involved.  It is easier to tell someone we will pray for them than it is to actually listen to them and encourage them through our actions.  But loving each other in more practical way is exactly what God wants us to do:  “Dear children, let us not love with words or tongue but with actions and in truth.” 1 John 3:18. 

So go forth! Be fruitful and multiply the blessings God has given you; take that mustard seed o’ faith and plant God’s love everywhere you roam.  It’s a Mad World, people, and you just never know what you may be accomplishing when you look someone in the eye, show them they matter, and take the time to cultivate the gifts of others.  Oh, and if you happen to spot a small, smelly, unkempt little firecracker of a gal, give her a big squeeze for me….

Catch you on the flip side!

Ang   

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