Parent to Parent By Jodie Lynn
Moments for Mom By Elisabeth Corcoran
Ask A Twin Mommy By Cheryl Lage
Mothering By Heart By Cheri Fuller
Jelly Mom By Lisa Barker
Family Check-up By Sheila Wray Gregoire
Simplifying Motherhood By Trish Berg
Making the Most of Marriage By Paula Friedrichsen
Influential Love
April, 2006
By Trish Berg
Some people impact our lives immediately, and we see their love for what it is. We know our parents love us right from the start. They are the ones who cradle us in their arms, nourish us with milk, kiss our tiny fingers and toes, and shower us with warmth. As we grow up, they teach us right from wrong, good from bad, and kiss our boo boo’s goodbye.
But there are other people who have impacted my life in little ways, people whose names I might have forgotten, but whose faces are etched in my mind. They touched my life with tiny little moments of love and grace. At the time, I hardly recognized their influential love. But with a lifetime of hindsight, I can see those moments for what they truly were. Life changing, path altering moments that impacted who I am today.
As a child, I walked to and from school in my small suburban town. Everyday, my friends and I crossed the railroad tracks on Mapleway Drive. There was an older man who was the crossing guard there. Though I can’t remember his name, I can picture his face. He was short and pudgy, gray haired and wrinkly. He looked to us to be a hundred years old. But he was there, everyday, rain or shine, with a smile, a wink, and a word of encouragement. And though he wasn’t a teacher, he taught me how to be a friend. I wish I would have thanked him.
When I was in the sixth grade, I had Miss Romito for English class. She was a young teacher, with bright blue eyes, long brown hair, and a smile that made you feel like the most important person in the world. All the boys had crushes on her and all the girls wanted to be like her.
Miss Romito taught us how to give speaking presentations, shared her love for books and reading, and taught us a song to memorize our helping verbs (which I can still sing, by the way). Most of all, she treated us like friends, cared about our lives, and made learning English more fun than going to a circus!
My fifth grade homeroom teacher saw me through my parents divorce with compassion and love. My seventh grade gym teacher taught me how to shoot a free throw, and gave me the confidence to play on the basketball team. My eighth grade choir director put me in mixed ensemble and singers, and taught me how to sing and dance on stage.
As I watch my own kids grow and mature, and learn about life and love from their teachers, I wonder what they will remember. Will Hannah remember Mrs. Martin gave her a love for books, or Mrs. Horst taught her that learning can be more fun than a circus? Will Sydney remember that Mrs. Hoover made her laugh in the second grade with her stories and jokes?
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Will Colin remember that Mrs. Miller greeted him everyday in Kindergarten with a smile and a hug?
Teaching can sometimes be a thankless job with long hours and late evenings, grading papers and planning lessons. But their job is more than a job. Teachers influence our kids almost as much as we do as their moms. Their love is just as influential, and sometimes just as needed.
Love is usually taken for granted when we are young and yearned for when we are old. Though I didn’t appreciate it nearly enough at the time, I am thankful for all the Miss Romito’s in my life, and all the Mrs. Horst’s in my kids lives. Though our parents love us unconditionally, our teachers love us influentially with life changing, path altering little moments of grace and love that we may never forget.
Trish would love to hear from you at www.trishberg.com, or e-mail trishberg @ trishberg.com.
© Trish Berg, 2006-
Trish Berg is author to The Great American Supper Swap, and Rattled - Surviving Your Baby's First Year without Losing Your Cool! She has been a guest ABC World News Tonight, Midday Connection, and The Harvest Show.
She is an internationally known speaker for ministries such as MOPS, Hearts at Home, and in Australia on Parenting Seminars Online. She has written for Today's Christian Woman, MOMSense, CBN.com and P31 WOMAN.
For more information, check out www.TrishBerg.com
Read Trish's Simplifying Motherhood column at C'Moms