See Also:
Beginning of a FAMOUS Hero: The Barbara Jordan Story.
Life Lesson #66 – Credibility is valuable.
When it was time for the new school year to start, Ellie hardly knew anyone in her class. On the very first day, Ellie could tell she had gotten in a classroom with some kids who didn’t seem to care about the school rules. They talked when Mrs. Parsons was trying to talk. They wouldn’t behave in the line on the way to the cafeteria, and even in the afternoon when it was time to go home, they were noisy and began hitting each other with their backpacks.
Ellie’s mom came to the room after school to meet with the new teacher. Mrs. Parsons said, “I would love to have a whole class of Ellies.” Of course, that made Ellie and her mother feel good, but one of the other kids overheard Mrs. Parsons say that, and she couldn’t wait to tell the other kids that Ellie was the “teacher’s pet.” As the weeks passed, the class did not seem to get any better. Instead of trying to mind the school rules, they just got mad when they got into trouble for breaking the rules.
One day when the teacher told a girl she was going to have to miss part of her recess because she had been talking so much, the girl blurted out, “Why doesn’t Ellie ever have to miss recess?” Mrs. Parsons looked at the girl and said, “This has nothing to do with Ellie. You have the same opportunity to make right choices that Ellie has. Don’t say mean things about other people when you are not doing what you should. Instead be a HERO to yourself and the rest of the class by following the rules so you and others can be successful.”
The girl had never thought of it just that way before, and she decided right then to start using Ellie’s example instead of criticizing her. She was deciding to start becoming a HERO instead.
– Jim Lord