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my favorite teacher--and what she taught me

As I write this, it's the beginning of September, and everyone is headed back to school. It's got me thinking of notebooks and cafeteria food and, of course--teachers. Both of my parents were teachers, and I actually did end up being in both their classes. But were they my favorite teachers? Nope. They were good teachers, but my favorite teacher was my third grade teacher. She believed in every single one of her students and went out of her way to make all of us feel special. She saw I was shy and encouraged me to try out for the lead in our class play. I did--and I got the role! To this day, I can still remember how I felt when I got up on stage the night we held the play...the terror, the way my hands shook and then, how, once I started, it wasn't so bad. In fact, it was fun! The acting bug never bit me, but my third grade teacher taught me something amazing-- That it was okay to believe in myself. That I could do anything. And well, okay, I can't do anything. But she taught me to think about trying. And that is something I'll treasure forever.