Then a few weeks later an invitation to the wedding of Kim and John, also former students, appeared in my mailbox. The wedding would be held in town, and I stood smiling happily with the congregation as Kim came down the aisle.
To be perfectly honest, I loved being remembered by my former students. I can think of no finer compliment. And it was just the start.
In early September, I got a brief note from Lori. “Thank you for preparing me for college, Mrs. Davis,’' she wrote. And, on the same day, I received a fat envelope postmarked “California.’' It was from Ellyn. “I haven’t forgotten you, Mrs. Davis,’' she said. “I miss that senior writing class. Would you mind reading these rough drafts I’m enclosing and sending me some feedback?’'
I was happy to, and by now I was thinking of establishing a Most Remembered Teacher award--and nominating myself as the first recipient.
Soon thereafter, I signed up for an adult education course at a nearby high school. Always the eager student, I arrived much too early and sat waiting for the instructor and the other students. Suddenly I gasped in disbelief as a familiar face from my past appeared in the doorway.
“I remember you. You’re one of my former students,’' I shouted joyfully. I hadn’t seen Dawn since she graduated more than 15 years ago. But surely she would recall the close relationship she had with the Most Remembered Teacher.
Dawn stared at me quizzically, then her face seemed to beam. “And I remember you, too,’' she responded politely.
My heart swelled.
She continued, “You’re Mrs. Edwards, right?’' --Jean M. Davis
The writer has taught English for 19 years at Gorham (Me.) High School.
