Latest / Good Morning From The Chicken Coop! / Season 4 - Episode 244 - The tale of two teachers and Kindness
Transcript
- 0:01Hey everybody, welcome to the good morning from the Chicken
- 0:04Coop podcast. My name is Kim Johnson and I am
- 0:07a mastermindset coach, creative strategist, and also happened to
- 0:10be a farmer. This is my chicken coop and I
- 0:12come out here every day to record a podcast to teach
- 0:16distinctions, possibilities, new ways of thinking, and just bring
- 0:20some joy into the world. So welcome to the coop and let's
- 0:23start your day off in a fantastic way.
- 0:27Hey everybody, good morning from the chicken coop.
- 0:30Well, actually it's good evening.
- 0:31I'm recording it now because I have I'm in with all the girls
- 0:35and they're all tucking into bed and I just love this time.
- 0:38And in the morning it's dark now.
- 0:40So I'm coming out here and if I can and the evening and
- 0:44recording. So good evening from the chicken
- 0:47coop. So we're going to talk today
- 0:49about my first grade teacher and my second grade teacher.
- 0:52And there's a point to this. So my first grade teacher was
- 0:55Missus Delano, and Misses Delano was a woman who terrified me.
- 1:02I peed my pants in her class friends.
- 1:05And I will tell you it was because I didn't want to ask to
- 1:08go to the bathroom because she was so angry about everything
- 1:11all the time. She had no patience.
- 1:14She didn't speak nicely to children.
- 1:17She was scary, scary, scary. And I did not go to a private
- 1:24school. I went to a public school.
- 1:25But for kindergarten and preschool, I did go to a private
- 1:29school and it was a very different experience.
- 1:30And then I was switched over to this public school in the town
- 1:35that I lived in in Massachusetts.
- 1:36And she terrified me and I cried.
- 1:40Most days I can't had tears over something.
- 1:44And I remember thinking at that point in time how much I did not
- 1:49like school. I liked learning, but I did not
- 1:51like school. I did not have a good time.
- 1:53And my mother just could not understand why because I had
- 1:56always loved it. And it was an experience.
- 1:59And I would say I didn't like her.
- 2:01And she would say, you know, you have to try.
- 2:04And she would always, you know, try to encourage me.
- 2:07But what I needed was a champion in that moment.
- 2:09And my mother just didn't have it in her to go there and say
- 2:12something or even find out what was going on because guess what?
- 2:16At that time in the world, it wasn't something you did.
- 2:19Now, if my child came home crying more than a day, I would
- 2:22have been like, completely at the school going, what the hell
- 2:25is happening? But it was a different time now
- 2:29Fast forward my second grade teacher when I moved up to her
- 2:32room, I didn't even realize there would be a difference
- 2:35between teachers. I was The summer between 1st
- 2:39grade and 2nd grade was a very, you know, I, I worried
- 2:44constantly. I was a warrior at that point in
- 2:46time. I would even venture to say that
- 2:49you could probably gather that my anxiety really started to
- 2:53take root then. However, you know, I can't
- 2:56remember that far back specifically.
- 2:58So I'll just say I remember worrying through the summer
- 3:01about going back to school and what it was going to be like and
- 3:03how it was going to go. And it was very frustrating for
- 3:06me because quite frankly, it was a big deal to go because I was
- 3:11thinking I was going to get the same thing that I had before.
- 3:13So now Fast forward to 1st day in school, 2nd grade, and I have
- 3:17Mrs. Walker, who is possibly the kindest woman I ever knew in my
- 3:22life. She gave students hugs.
- 3:24She talked about imagination all the time.
- 3:28She, you know, talked to us about how she had a ghost in her
- 3:32classroom. And his name was Jimmy.
- 3:34And he always sat up on the lights and he was here to help
- 3:36us. And he was friendly like Casper.
- 3:39And we had an empty desk in the back.
- 3:43If he wanted to sit, he could sit at that desk.
- 3:45It was it was so inviting and she was so fun.
- 3:50And she would always, you know, talk to us about the things that
- 3:53we each individually loved. And, you know, public school,
- 3:55there was a lot of kids in the class.
- 3:57And she remembered what everybody loved.
- 4:00She remembered the kind of stories I loved.
- 4:02She remembered that I loved to draw all the time.
- 4:04And she was just like such a kind soul.
- 4:08And it changed my, my version of how people can be different.
- 4:15And I remember coming home and saying I want to take her to
- 4:17every, every grade with me. I want them all to come to be
- 4:22with Missus Walker. And of course that didn't
- 4:25happen. And when I went up to 3rd grade,
- 4:28I had someone who was in between.
- 4:31And then it, you know, it progressed on and on and on
- 4:34where every year got into a classroom with a different
- 4:38teacher and they all had different ways of doing it.
- 4:40But what was so fascinating to me was I remember and still use
- 4:45things that she taught me in my own business about how you
- 4:49should just always be kind to clients, kind to people, but
- 4:55students, she was so kind to students.
- 4:56And I always think about that and being kind to clients.
- 4:59Like when they need something, don't not help them.
- 5:01They need something they're asking.
- 5:03Figure out how you can help them and, and do it.
- 5:06Even if they can't do it for themselves, figure out how they
- 5:09can help, how you can help them or how you can guide them and,
- 5:13or maybe even do it for them. I'm, I mean, I'm, I'll admit, I
- 5:17I jump in often and do things to help them when they can't figure
- 5:20stuff out, especially in the realm of graphics.
- 5:23But the point of all of this is to say, leading with kindness
- 5:27was something that I learned way back when and that woman had
- 5:31such an impact on my life at such an early age.
- 5:35We have to realize that that kind of thing sticks with us.
- 5:40We can remember all the horrible stuff, but it is also possible
- 5:43to remember the great stuff. And she was one of the great
- 5:46ones. So today we are honoring Missus
- 5:48Walker, her kindness and how much that meant to me and every
- 5:53one of the people that I work with and all my clients because
- 5:55I bring it right back. So I hope you guys have a
- 5:58blessed day and I will see you all tomorrow.
- 6:01Bye.