Why I'll Never Forget How She Made Me Feel

There's this famous quote from Maya Angelou that reads, “I've learned that people will forget what you said, people will forget what you did, but people will never forget how you made them feel.”

I certainly don't remember everything about her, what she said or did, but I will never forget how Ms. Costa made me feel...

I was a sophomore at Windsor High School "fresh off the Jamaican boat" (funny but not so funny way to describe Jamaican immigrants new to the United States), and I couldn't have felt more insecure and out of place like a fish without water. I felt self-conscious about everything. How I looked, how I spoke, what I wore...you name it. I was 14 years old, experiencing the most extreme culture shock of my life, but it was Ms. Costa who was my saving grace.

She was my English literature teacher, she never pronounced my name properly, and black seemed to be her color of choice. She always wore black, and I remember her wearing black stockings with these black clunky shoes. She was a White woman with medium length dark brown hair and she always wore a bright color on her lips.

She would always call on me to read in class. I hated that! I wanted so much to blend in and not stick out like a sore thumb, but my accent always gave me away! And every time I read in class, without fail, she always had nothing but compliments for me. I mean she would just flatter me with praises and approval slowly boosting my confidence.  She remarked how well I read, how I read so fast and how I enunciated my words so perfectly...and she did this all in front of the whole class! She did wonders for me during that tumultuous period in my life, and I am so grateful to her for that.

Every once in a while, I think of Ms. Costa, and I'm reminded of her kindness and empathy. I'm not sure if she was once, herself, an immigrant, and I'm not really even sure if she understands what she did for me. But I'm pretty sure she went out of her way to encourage me in what she understood to be a difficult situation...being the "new kid" after moving to a brand new country. 

I'm not even sure what made me think of Ms. Costa tonight. Perhaps it's because my summer vacation is halfway over, and I've been thinking about the upcoming school year and all the students who will possibly be like I was, oh so many, many years ago...new to a country, school, and culture. It's possible with the population I teach. Very possible.  

I don't remember everything Ms. Costa taught me, but I will never forget how she made me feel. That alone made all the difference for me.  It helped to shape my future, it ignited my passion for learning, and it proves how caring teachers have the ability to change the course of one's life...for the better.