Recently, I was asked ‘What was the one thing that changed
me while I was in the class with my mentor?’
As I have reflected on this, I figured this is a good question that
should be answered on my blog. I
probably don’t have any followers now, as it has been a long time since I have
made a post, but I feel a need to get this honest question answered honestly,
and out there for others.
There were many things that I learned from my class. However, I think it is a collection of all
things that I learned, with the encouragement of my mentor that changed
me. I could attempt to say the one thing
I think changed me now, but without some information first, you cannot fully appreciate,
or understand my answer.
First, 5+4=9.
6+3=9. 3x3=9. 12-3=9, and 27/3=9. There is no way I can list all the different
math combinations to come up with 9, and that doesn’t even begin to cover
algebraic equations to come up with 9.
So which one is correct? And does
that mean all the others are wrong? For
whatever reason, I came to believe that even though I may have the correct
answer, if I didn’t get it the way someone else did, I was wrong. Or stupid, or dumb, or whatever. ‘You can’t do it that way, or you will come
up with the wrong answer sometime down the road’ I have been told. I thought I had found a way to solve the
problem, as I came up with the correct answer, but in essence was told I was
wrong, and didn’t know how to solve the problem. Very confusing, especially for a young child.
Second, I was told I
had a gift. Never in my lifetime would I
consider dyslexia a gift. However, as I
have learned more about dyslexia, the more I realized that I do have something
that others do not have. I don’t know
how many times a solution was agreed upon when working in a group to solve a
problem, but I knew there was something they had not considered, or knew it
would not work at all. The first few
times as I voiced my concerns, I was unable to explain clearly to them what
they have not considered, or why it would not work, and I was ignored. It doesn’t take long before one will not say
anything after being made fun of. Sure
enough, when they got to that point, they had more challenges. By that time, I had time to think of some possible
solutions. This is not to say that I never have had any problems on any project
I have done. I don’t know everything,
but as I learn from each project, I know how to do that, and won’t run into
that problem again. However, I do have a
gift, that when put in charge of an event, I can see the event as it unfolds,
and know what needs to be done before hand to have it go that way. It is when I
forget to write it down and share with
others, then I may forget to do something, and others may not be aware of what
needs to be done before hand.
Orientation is so
important to me. Any distraction, and I
am lost at trying to get things done. No
distraction, and I get lost in the work I am doing and time flies by. When I talk of distraction, I mean any of the
5 senses, sight, sound, feel/touch, smell, or taste. A bird flying by a window
outside, the smell of a cookies coming out of an oven, a loud sound, or a beat
of music, a pat on the back, or a bite of a sweet apple can cause me to lose
concentration. Having raised 7 children,
do I need to say I have been distracted a lot?
I found that if I was in a room by myself, with the door closed, I could
concentrate on what I needed to do. Yet
I also found out the hard way that my children were thinking I was trying to
push them out of my life, or ignore them.
Yet I was willing to talk to them, all they had to do was knock or come
in. However, they never knew that for
the longest time.
My mentor said that I could learn to recite the alphabet
backwards, and gave me the assignment to do that one night. I remember thinking to myself ‘What is she
trying to do to me?’ Most of us probably have the song going in our mind when
we recite it forwards, how can I learn it backwards? This seemed like it would be a huge assignment,
and I would be lucky to have it memorized before the end of the week, when
class would be over. As this was a class
of one—me, I knew I could not hid behind others, so I knew I had to work on
that assignment that night. What really
surprised me was the fact that she knew that I could do it. And I was surprised even more, at how quickly
I learned to do that. I don’t know
exactly how long I was working on it, but if it was more than 30 to 45 minutes,
I would be surprised. I had learned that
I am a visual learner, and I started looking at the alphabet differently, and
different thoughts, then pictures came to mind.
It has been a long time since I have done this, but went through my mind
as I was typing this, and it came back to me quickly. I forgot the letter ‘g’ the first time. Not bad for not doing it for at least 6
months.
Now, what does all this have to do with the ‘one thing’ that
changed me? It is the ‘someone’ who knew
what I had inside me all the time, but I didn’t know. But putting it all together is hard, and then
to be told, much less think, that you just might after all be a genius is
unthinkable. Here was a person who
believed in me, and knew how to help me believe in myself. Here was that person who kept telling me I am
a genius. Here was that person telling me that I could do it—anything that I
wanted to do. I wasn’t dumb when I came up with the correct answer differently
than the person who was teaching me.
There are many ways to solve problems, but how many can go through the
many steps to solve a problem almost instantly, at the start? Those people have a special gift.
And one of the greatest gift I have received, outside my
family, is my mentor, who taught me to believe in myself. I may need to stand alone at times, but I can
do so with confidence now. I don’t have
to follow popular opinions. I don’t have
to follow ‘the thinking of the world’. I
have a sound mind, and God has given me a gift.
It is my mentor who taught me how to use it.
So, if I have to answer ‘what one thing’ that changed me, I
have to say it is my mentor. It wasn’t
easy, and I dreaded going to class one day that week. I challenged so much of
what she was teaching me. When I say
challenge, I don’t mean in a defiant way, but ‘I don’t understand, or why, or
how, regarding what she was opening up to me. I didn’t understand, or had
considered what she was telling me, and needed it explained to me in a
different way. I must, and will, take
credit for hanging in when I didn’t want to, to keep following up after that
week of classes. But it was the mentor that made the change in me. Is it
strange to say that my mentor who challenged me in so many ways, and was ‘very
hard’ on me (as I saw it at the time), has become so dear to me, and a close
friend? Thanks Cindy Gardner, for being
my mentor. I only wish there were so
many more of you to help all the people in the world who need help.
Gift photo courteous of Howard Jackman. Used with permission