Monday, May 5, 2014

Happy Birthday, Teacher!

Over the weekend, we attended a birthday party for an old friend.  On the third of May, Bessie Hart celebrated her 95th birthday.

Mrs. Hart was a third grade teacher in our school system for many years.  I asked her if she had ever calculated the number of third graders that passed through her classroom doors over the years.  "No!" she said.  "Don't," I said.   And why not?  For the effort she expended and the wisdom and knowledge she passed on to her charges were accomplishments far beyond statistics.  And I can assure you that her students were never just numbers to her.

Happy birthday, Old Friend.  And we do wish you many more.

5 comments:

Vee said...

I've never known a teacher who kept a record of the number of students taught. However, when teaching middle school, I always knew how many students I would be seeing each day during the year, thus how many names I needed to connect to faces before the end of the first week.

Happy Birthday to Mrs. Hart!

Sharkbytes said...

She looks like she's doing quite well. Nice that you could celebrate with her.

Lin said...

Wow, she looks GREAT! Is she really 95???!

Imagine all the lives you touch as a teacher. That is incredible!

I'm glad she had such a nice birthday.

Shelly said...

Now that is a true reason for celebration!

vanilla said...

Vee, yes; and if my memory serves me right, that meant somewhere between 180 and 210 names, most years.

Sharkey, I have known Bessie many years. I will affirm that she has "aged gracefully."

Lin, she is really 95, and the unaltered snapshot attests to probably both good genetics and clean living.

Shelly, truth. If I should live to that age, I shall celebrate!