by Kathy Lowther

Created on: April 18, 2008   Last Updated: October 31, 2008

Sheila watched wide eyed as her second grade teacher bit the eraser off of one of our fellow student's pencils. "You will NOT erase!" As she marched down the aisles, pointing her finger at us we struggled to breathe in this swelteringly hot air in our Baltimore classroom. Our classrooms did not have central air back then and I wondered if it could be the heat that had made our teacher become so mean. She had convinced Sheila that she was one of the world's worst children. She also made her self-esteem hit absolute rock bottom at a very tender age.

During that nightmare year of second grade she had belittled us, she had screamed at us, she had moved our seats to the front of the room and forbid us to turn our heads to either side. Talking was strictly forbidden. She had stopped Sheila from playing on the playground and she had made her stand-alone at times when the other children were at play. She had PINCHED a child for not following directions and she made one boy cry, as he became so frustrated with her.

Now I'm sure you're wondering what it might have been that Sheila did that could have warranted this kind of behavior from a teacher. Well you'll probably be surprised to find out that the reason she received all of this discipline and punishment was because during our handwriting lessons she was unable to make a "W" that pleased our teacher. And here's the most ironic thing about all of this from the 4th grade on for the rest of Sheila's life she has been complimented on her handwriting.

I remember standing in the grocery line with Sheila and her mother and hearing Sheila say, "Mom, I really hope that I can write as beautifully as you do some day." Her mother laughed. She thought it was a nice thing to say so she couldn't understand why her mother was laughing! "Why are you laughing Mommy?" she asked innocently. "Because sweetheart," she said, "I remember saying that exact thing to your grandfather!"

Not only has Sheila always loved to write the words that flow from her brain to her fingers but she has also loved to write with different kinds of pens and different colors of bottled ink. She loves new paper and enjoys using different pen tips to make her swirls and dashes. She loves to draw borders and I have even watched her address beautiful wedding invitations for an admirer of her handwriting.

But this is only the first half of my story. By now you're wondering could this woman have ended up being her mentor? Could she have been so hard on this child that

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