Mrs. Sewell (as I knew to call her) was my fifth grade teacher back in 1998. I remember being terrified at the thought of being her student. I had heard nothing but horrible stories of how she was mean and how she would make you write apology letters to her if we made her mad. I remember walking into her classroom on the first day of class and beginning our English lesson. All of a sudden in the middle of our lesson she turned and shouted "STOP". Of course we all jumped, but we were soon shocked when she busted into song and continued with "in the name of love". We didnt know what to think. She shook around a bit and said something along the lines of "wait wait, thats not what I meant to say". She went on to teach us a fun way to remember a specific rule about spelling, that to this day continues to help me.
"STOP! (this is the point she would randomly interject the aforementioned song before continuing to the rule) when a single consonant is preceeded by a single vowel, you double the consonant. Add "ed", "ing" whatever you want it to be"
Of course this fun little jingle was repeated almost every day, along with a number of other fun rhymes. I quickly realized how lucky I was to have her as a teacher, despite the fact that she did indeed kick you out of the classroom to write her letters of apology. It was through her odd ways of working and engaging us that I grew not only academically, but also in maturity and self confidence. Mrs. Sewell took me from a kid who had little self-esteem and seldom cared about my education, to a confident 10 year old who loved to learn! She was amazing!
I frequently visited Mrs. Sewell in her classroom over the last 13 years, and she and my family grew to be very close. She became like another mom to me. I looked up to her for encouragement and laughter (something she was never short of). She was one of the most amazing people to ever come into my life!
I am beginning this journey and commitment to walk in the Susan G. Komen Breast Cancer 3-Day in her honor. The world lost a truly amazing woman when she passed. I am walking these 60 miles in hopes that the world wont be robbed of another persons Mrs. Sewell because of this horrible cancer. It is a loss that is gut wrenching to think about and have to realize. But her memory lives on! I know she will be there with us for this journey!
Rest In Peace Mrs. Sewell. We will make you proud!
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