Something to Think About

The Not So True Story of Dr. Theodore Stoddard.

As she stood in front of her 5th grade class on the
very first day of school, she told the children an
untruth. Like most teachers, she looked at her
students and said that she loved them all the same.
However, that was impossible, because there in the
front row, slumped in his seat, was a little boy named
Teddy Stoddard.

Mrs. Thompson had watched Teddy the year before and
noticed that he did not play well with the other
children, that his clothes were messy and that he
constantly needed a bath. In addition, Teddy could be
unpleasant. It got to the point where Mrs. Thompson
would actually take delight in marking his papers with
a broad red pen, making bold X's and then putting a big
'F' at the top of his papers.

At the school where Mrs. Thompson taught, she was
required to review each child's past records and she
put Teddy's off until last. However, when she reviewed
his file, she was in for a surprise.

Teddy's first grade teacher wrote, 'Teddy is a bright
child with a ready laugh. He does his work neatly and
has good manners... he is a joy to be around..'

His second grade teacher wrote, 'Teddy is an
excellent student, well liked by his classmates, but he
is troubled because his mother has a terminal illness
and life at home must be a struggle.'

His third grade teacher wrote, 'His mother's death has
been hard on him. He tries to do his best, but his
father doesn't show much interest, and his home life
will soon affect him if some steps aren't taken.'

Teddy's fourth grade teacher wrote, 'Teddy is
withdrawn and doesn't show much interest in school. He
doesn't have many friends and he sometimes sleeps in
class.'

By now, Mrs. Thompson realized the problem and she was
ashamed of herself. She felt even worse when her
students brought her Christmas presents, wrapped in
beautiful ribbons and bright paper, except for
Teddy's. His present was clumsily wrapped in the
heavy, brown paper that he got from a grocery bag.
Mrs. Thompson took pains to open it in the middle of
the other presents. Some of the children started to
laugh when she found a rhinestone bracelet with some
of the stones missing, and a bottle that was
one-quarter full of perfume. But she stifled the
children's laughter when she exclaimed how pretty the
bracelet was, putting it on, and dabbing some of the
perfume on he r wrist. Teddy Stoddard stayed after
school that day just long enough to say, 'Mrs.
Thompson, today you smelled just like my Mom used to.'

After the children left, she cried for at least an
hour. On that very day, she quit teaching reading,
writing and arithmetic. Instead, she began to teach
children. Mrs. Thompson paid particular attention to
Teddy. As she worked with him, his mind seemed to come
alive. The more she encouraged him, the faster he
responded. By the end of the year, Teddy had become
one of the smartest children in the class and, despite
her lie that she would love all the children the same,
Teddy became one of her 'teacher's pets..'


A year later, she found a note under her door, from
Teddy, telling her that she was the best teacher he
ever had in his whole life.

Six years went by before she got another note
from Teddy. He then wrote that he had finished high
school, third in his class, and she was still the best
teacher he ever had in life.

Four years after that, she got another letter, saying
that while things had been tough at times, he'd stayed
in school, had stuck with it, and would soon graduate
from college with the highest of honors. He assured
Mrs. Thompson that she was still the best and favorite
teacher he had ever had in his whole life.

Then four more years passed and yet another letter
came. This time he explained that after he got his
bachelor's degree, he decided to go a little further.
The letter explained that she was still the best and
favorite teacher he ever had But now his name was a
little longer. The letter was signed, Theodore F.
Stoddard, MD.

The story does not end there. You see, there was yet
another letter that spring Teddy said he had met this
girl and was going to be married. He explained that
his father had died a couple of years ago and he was
wondering if Mrs. Thompson might agree to sit at the
wedding in the place that was usually reserved for the
mother of the groom. Of course, Mrs. Thompson did. And
guess what? She wore that bracelet, the one with
several rhinestones missing. Moreover, she made sure
she was wearing the perfume that Teddy remembered his
mother wearing on their last Christmas together.

They hugged each other, and Dr. Stoddard whispered in
Mrs. Thompson's ear, 'Thank you Mrs. Thompson for
believing in me. Thank you so much for making me feel
important and showing me that I could make a
difference.'

Mrs. Thompson, with tears in her eyes, whispered back.
She said, 'Teddy, you have it all wrong. You were the
one who taught me that I could make a difference. I
didn't know how to teach until I met you.'

(For you that don't know, Teddy Stoddard is the Dr. at
Iowa Methodist in Des Moines that has the Stoddard
Cancer Wing.)**

As Gandhi said; "We must become the change we want to see in the world."

**After checking with Snopes.com I discovered that that this story, frequently e-mailed, is not true.  Read about the orgin of this story at:  http://www.snopes.com/glurge/teddy.asp

But let that not stop us from remembering that the best gift you could give or receive is touching a life and making a difference on someone’s life.

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