Saturday, August 21, 2010

Mrs. S and Moon River - The Pen to Paper Challenge Week 1

As a Pearista for Pear Tree Greetings, I have been able to share with you several great giveaways and coupons. Pear Tree Greetings is an online stationery company that loves to help people connect, whether it's via a personalized note card, Christmas Card or birth announcement, or their Pearista program where bloggers like me get to share the company with readers like you! And, don't forget that August's coupon is 15% off all baby related items with code "PEARAUG10".

Well, this month, I took them up on a fun opportunity to share some of my letter-writing with you, my dear readers! I love personal, hand-written notes and have some very fond memories of writing to my grandmother through my childhood, and my now husband through high-school and college. Because I feel that the handwritten notes will never go out of style, my children and I often make "letters" to send to their grandparents, aunts, and uncles. So, I was very excited to accept the pen to paper challenge, which consists of me writing a hand-written note once a week for four weeks and sharing my experiences with you! And oh yeah, I have the opportunity to win a $50 gift certificate to Pear Tree Greetings!


So, who to write to this week? Imagine me waving my hands saying, "doodle oooh, doodle ooooh, doodle oooh a la Wayne's World..... 
 

I recently received an alumni magazine from my high school sometime in June. As I was thumbing through it to see who got married, who has had children, whose parents donate enough money to put in life size pictures of their alumni's second neice, etc. I saw the pictures from the graduating class of 2010. As I read the caption, I noticed a familiar name....hmmm....where had I seen this name before. Suddenly a flood of emotions came over me and I had a very special song in my head. Moon River. And so, when my note cards arrived I put my pen to the paper, and accepted the challenge.



You see, a whole lifetime ago, a little over a year ago, I was a teacher and not a stay-at-home mom. I love teaching, and before I had children I devoted my life to other peoples' children and spent literally 60-70 hours a week on school work. This devotion started in the Fall of 2004, with my student-teaching mentor Mrs. S. Mrs. S loved teaching. You could tell by they way her classroom smelled of soap and pencil shavings that she was a good teacher. She was soft and yet stern, and had an affinity for Andy Williams. When I first met her, I made the mistake of thinking that the framed picture on her desk of her hugging an older man was perhaps an anniversary picture, but no....it was her beloved Andy Williams. I recall even making her a CD of 12 different artists' remakes of Moon River, but I made sure to include Andy's at the end.


Mrs. S had one daughter, Anna. She prayed and prayed for Anna, and waited a very long time to finally become a mother. I truly believe that she loves this sweet child more than any mother has loved a daughter. And so, when I knew Mrs. S, Anna was in middle school.



Well, as I flipped through this alumni magazine I saw her. It was Anna, all grown up. The valedictorian of her graduating class, with a 4.0 and scholarships to every Catholic University I have ever heard of. I knew that Mrs. S had to have been bawling her eyes out at graduation, immensely proud of her angel. And so, though I haven't spoken to Mrs. S since I graduated in December of 2004, I knew that she was going to be the first recipient of my letter for the pen to paper challenge. 



As I sat down to write, it felt as if I was talking to my best friend again. Her and I always got along because we both loved to work, and I have always been an old soul. I shared with her my life, and congratulated her on being such a good mother. I sent blessings for her family and offered to come see her the next time I was in town. I ended the note with, "I hope you can celebrate Anna's life with one last trip to Branson before Anna drifts down her own moon river to find the rainbow's end". I can see her smiling now.
 


2 comments:

  1. That is so beautiful Rachel! You got me thinking I'm pregnant again because you got me all teary!

    ReplyDelete
  2. How sweet! I bet she'll be thrilled that you remember her!

    ReplyDelete

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