Sharing

I have been doing some reading this summer (24 books so far) and taking the kids to play at the park, to putt-putt and Incredible Pizza. I've also been taking stock of the things to go into the make-up of a person. You see, I grew up in a family that had little money and many kids. We were on government assistance for my entire childhood minus the first four years of my life. I learned what it was to not have and but want. There were people along my path that fed into my life that I know made me who I am today, people outside my family that I can honestly say made a difference in my character makeup. Some were parents of friends of mine, one being a lady named Sue.
Sue was my best friends mom when I was in grades four through eight. I spent many weekends at her house, most Sunday afternoons and countless summer days in her company. She was the first person I had ever met who made roast and potatoes for lunch on Sundays. She was the first person I knew who stayed home and raised her family, even babysat another friends child daily so that mom could work. She was the first person who knew me by my name and not as one of the Gabel kids. I treasured my individuality in her home, I learned a lot about compassion and giving in her home.
The next few people were my teachers throughout high school career. I loved loved loved school. In school I had a creative outlet, a challenge, an identity (once again a big deal for a child in a family of six kids that had ten cousins living next door) that depended on what I gave to it. I loved a few classes more than others, due in part to the teachers. My business teacher I and joked that she was going to be my new mom. I loved her....I took to calling her Mrs. M (which to most just shortened her last name Maslowski) M for Mom. :) She selected me for special projects, took me to business contests, groomed me for "political office" (FBLA) and just made me feel like I was worth something. I flourished in her care. My math/computers teacher, Mr. Hendrix, and I had a great relationship. He was a hard man to know and even harder to understand in the classroom because he is doer more than a teacher. But his desire to teach over-rode for me the sometimes difficult communication and I learned his language and began to love math. I already loved computers, which I think gave him a desire to feed that passion of mine. I grew close to his family, babysat for his wife and kids and took as many of his classes as possible. ( I just saw him in May at my nephew's graduation and got to tell him of his positive effect on my life, something that I had wanted to do for a long time. ) My music teacher, Mrs. Young, and I bonded where most of the music caliber do (although I have an OK voice, she has an amazing talent for all things music..I am still in awe of her) in the small choirs. I threw myself into anything she wanted us to do musically. She wanted to do a musical, my name would be first on the sign up list. She wanted to start a traveling show choir, I signed up for auditions. Music contest, yep, sign me up. Once again, I stress that there are many many many people more talented than I...I have no visions of grandeur, would not ever make it on American Idol nor even Springfield Idol...but my love of singing can only be surpassed by my daughters. I got to see Mrs. Young a couple of years ago, and told her of her influence in my life and thanked her for all she had fed into me. Lastly my second business teacher, Mrs. Wilkerson, came along my sophomore year. At first I had a hard time adjusting to her since my Mrs. M had meant so much to me, but after a time, I grew to care for her almost as much. She was a teacher that taught by saying things like "Now, ladies and gentlemen, I know that romance seems like the most important thing in your life, but try to remember you can fall in love when you're 30 but you'll look awfully silly sitting in my class at 30. Let's keep our priorities straight." And she would smile sweetly and go about her teaching. She took us to her home sometimes to show us what life could be like if we strove for something "more", she took us to nice restaurants to show us there was more to life than McDonald's and she talked to us. Really talked to us like adults. It was an amazing thing when she volunteered to drive me to my college orientation. She offered her home after graduation from high school if I ever decided to go to a home town school instead of farther away. She was a true friend. ( I was privileged to see her a tea room a couple of years ago when my second daughter was having her birthday party and shared with her my appreciation for her influence. )

The common thread that wove through each of these people? Sharing. They shared their hearts with me. The taught me to share my heart with others and I am forever grateful. I also learned that a heart that is given will still be blessed even when it is rejected by the intended receiver. It is the act of sharing that brings the joy.