Where do you find inspiration? Who influenced you? Not only do we look to other people for inspiration, we also are the inspiration and influence for others. As a young girl, I read biographies of famous people such as Helen Keller, Clara Barton and Amelia Earhart. While those ladies didn't inspire me to become a nurse or a flier, I knew I wanted to be a teacher when I read a short story about a girl and her teacher in my 10th grade literature book. Now as I look back on my life, I realize books weren't the only source of my inspiration. My grandmother and mother were huge influences.
Anna Marie Kaufman was born in eastern Pennsylvania on May
13, 1894 to German immigrants. Marie,
as she was known, showed her strength and determination at an early age. She fought to be accepted in a country that
didn’t always look favorably on poor immigrants. She pushed for an education at a time when
few girls went to school. She marched
for prohibition and Woman’s Suffrage.
After her marriage in 1920 to a dairy farmer, she worked alongside her
husband when needed to see that the cows were milked, corn hoed and hay stored
in the barn. This was in addition to
seeing that her four children were taken care of.
Cooking, sewing and cleaning were a part of her everyday life. As Marie’s children grew, she continued to
pursue her dream of an education. She
took Bible courses as well as becoming a practical nurse. She volunteered in a variety of ways in her
church and became a 4-H leader. Marie
taught her children the value of education.
“Be whatever you want to be, but be a good one," she told her
children. Marie faced problems head on
with an optimistic view of life. A trait
she definitely passed on to her daughter Virginia.
Virginia Ann Parrish was born March 31, 1924. “Almost an April Fool’s baby,” she often
said. Life on a farm isn’t easy, and
life on a farm during the Great Depression was even more challenging. “We were poor,” said Virginia, “but we didn’t
know it. Everyone was poor.” Virginia saw her parents fight to keep the
farm in spite of drought and, one year, the loss of the entire herd of
cows. It’s no wonder that when Virginia
faced difficulties in life, she also faced them head on. Like her mother before her, Virginia fought
for an education. She had a Bachelor of
Science degree when she was 20 and taught one year of high school science. The following year, she met Carl, the young
Navy veteran who would become her husband.
Together they had three daughters.
Virginia was a stay-at-home-volunteer-at-church wife and mother while
her children were young. Her daughters
didn’t always have the latest whatever they thought they should have, but they
did have food, shelter and love. As her
oldest daughter approached high school, Virginia took classes to obtain an
elementary teaching certificate. She
also nursed her husband back to health after his first heart attack. In the early 1970’s, things at home began to fall
apart. Virginia finally decided to
divorce her husband of nearly 25 years.
Her daughters watched as she made the difficult decision and as she
fought to regain her self-esteem. She ultimately didn’t let the divorce stop
her. She pulled herself together and
continued her teaching and church work.
She was honored for that church work just a few weeks ago.
Marie and Virginia didn’t set out to be inspirational. They
were simply doing their jobs, living their lives. Each of us is an inspiration to someone
whether we know it or not. We don’t
always realize the impact little things have on others. A smile or hello can brighten someone’s
day. Giving a student a little extra
time can stay with that person for years.
Did you ever stop to think where the world would be if you hadn’t been
born? We’re the pebble tossed in the
lake. The ripples of our influence
multiply as they extend beyond us. Let’s
say an elementary teacher has 25 students in her class. If she teaches for 30 years, that’s 750
people she’s had an influence on! But it
doesn’t stop there. What about those children?
What do they become? If just one
of your former students becomes a teacher and teaches 25 students a year for 30
years, that’s another 750 people that your ripples have reached. We haven’t mentioned your family, your
friends, or other people you come in contact with. So, when you’re tired and discouraged, remind
yourself that you are doing good things in this chaotic world. Remind yourself that television, movies and
social media aren’t necessarily real.
What is real is what you do every day.
Putting food on the table, helping your children with their homework,
ironing your husband’s shirts are real.
Listening to Billy tell you about his home run last night or
complimenting Sally on her new outfit is real.
Like Marie and Virginia you are an influence and an inspiration to
someone, somewhere.
Acknowledgements: Like most writers, I had help writing this piece. Thank you, Virginia Jordan for the eloquent essay you wrote about your mother. It helped me tell Marie’s story succinctly. Myra Clark, thank you for your “where would we be” suggestion. It was just what I needed.
