To Be Viewed as a Life-Changer is the Epitome of Compliments

Daily writing prompt

What was the best compliment you’ve received?

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Many students come and go each semester, but as a retired professor, some stay in your heart. One person I remember had a difficult life situation, and she didn’t actually believe that she could complete the work I assigned. She came to see me, and as I loved listening to their life stories, I realized that no one had ever told her she was smart and capable. She lived with an aunt who used her more as a babysitter for children, and therefore, didn’t want her to leave and be successful.

But the desire for a great life is something that I believe is genetic, and no matter how hard someone tries to discourage us, some of us don’t accept that assessment of ourselves. So, we suffer until someone comes along to change the direction of our lives by revealing our potential for greatness. For me, it was Mrs. Rounsaville, my 10th-grade civics teacher. She encouraged me to write essays and believe I could fulfill my dreams.

I paid her wonderful blessing forward to my students, especially ones who I could sense could succeed but did not possess confidence in themselves. So, I worked with the student to improve her work, and when she recognized that she had a lot of potential, she smiled. I told her that she was a jewel, a diamond, and destined for great things that would change the world.

At the end of the semester, having earned an A in the class, she gave me a gift that I still possess after nearly 20 years. It states, “To the world, you are just one person, but to one person you could mean the world. I was stunned to receive it, but it reminded me, and still does, that we are meant to encourage others to be their best and to be life-changeers, as professors, as human beings, and in our work.