MyEnglishTeacher’sOdyssey
ByAvaStephens
“Whydidyoubecomeateacher?”“Well,that’sagoodone.IhadalwaysbeentoldthatI wouldbeagoodteacher.Mysixthgradeteacherwasthefirsttotellme.AndMr.GarrisBall, laterIdidalittlesubbingforhim,said‘Hedrick,youneedtobeateacher,’andIsaid,‘Ohmy goodnessno,doyouseehowtheydress!’”
BettyMarvinwasborninBaltimore,Maryland.Herfatherworkedforacompanycalled MartinMarietta,whichlaterbecameLockheedMartin.WhenthecompanymovedtoFlorida, whereshecurrentlylives,theymoveddownaswell.Herparentswere“SweetChristianpeople,” forwhomeducation,church,andcommunitywasveryimportant.Shehadthreesiblings,Mary, Katherine,andBobby.ShelivedincentralFloridafortheremainderofherchildhood.
Afterhighschool,shewenttocollege,andmajoredinsocialsciencesandEnglish,with theintentiontogotoLawSchool.Shelaughed,“Ididn’thavemuchfunincollege,becauseI wantedtograduateinthreeyearswithhonors.Ididnotjoinasorority,anddidnotreallydo muchbutstudyandgotoschool,eveninthesummer.”
WhenIaskedaboutherhusband,shechuckled.“Oh,yikes,”shesaid.Shemether husbandinhighschool,becausehewasdatingherbestfriend,andwhentheybrokeup,she starteddatinghim..Shesurfed,andshewastheonlygirlwhosurfedwithabunchof“cute
Christianguys.”Shelaughed.“Anditwasdelightful,becausetherewereallthesecuteChristian fellas.”Herfuturehusband,Dean,andherstarteddatinghersenioryearofhighschoolafter January.HethenwentintotheMarineCorpsfortwoyearsandgotoutandwenttocollege.A
fewyearslater,hejoinedagainandwentbackasanofficer.“We’vebeenmarried47andahalf years,”shesaid,“He’sadorable.”
Aftercollege,sheworkedasasocialworkerforayearbeforequitting.Shethenwentto travelthroughEuropewiththeintentionofstudyingatastudycentercalledLaBriein Switzerland,aChristianstudycenter.Sheendedupstudyingthere,andwhenshewasstudying thereshefelttheLordcallinghertobeateacher.Herdadhadalwayswantedhertobeateacher, andallofhersiblingsareteachersaswell.“SoIthought,no,becausepeoplewantedmeto,I guess,Iwasrebelling,Idon’tknow.ButwhileIwasstudyingatLaBrieitjustkeptcomingback tome.‘Gobacktoschoolandgetadegreeineducation.’AndIthought,‘Oh,I’vejustfinished school,andIwentsofast,’andIdidn’t,Iwasjustalot.ButIjustfeltthatthatwashonestlywhat theLordwantedmetodo.SoIhadpeoplepraying,andsoonthewayback,ontheplane,this ideacametometogotalktotheprincipalatthisschoolnearwhereIlived,andtoseeifIcould workoutandgotoschool.Andthat'showitworkedout.AndI'vebeenteachingeversince.”
Whenherhusbandwentintothemarinesforthesecondtime,aftertwoyearshecame backandaskedhertomarryhim,andtheygotmarried.Shethentaughtfortwoyearswithhim, andhejoinedthemarinesagain,becausehe“saidthemarineswereeasierthanteaching.”So thenshetraveledwithhimtoCaliforniaandthenTokyo,andshetaughtforthedependent schoolsthere.TheywereinOniwa,Tokyo,forfouryears.Whilethere,theygotabilletandshe taughtataJapaneseChristiandependentschool.
ABibleversethatinspiredheris1Peter4.“‘Aboveallelse,loveoneanotherdeeply,for lovecoversamultitudeofsins.’AndIknowthatJesuscoveredamultitudeofsinsforme,and Hisloveandgrace,andI'mtoextendthattomystudentsandtoothers.”
Whensittingdowntointerviewoneofmypersonalheroes,Ididn’tyetknowher
incrediblejourneythatledhertoherjobasmyseventh-gradeEnglishteacher.Thiswasa journeythatledherfromcollegetocollege,jobtojob,andevenacrosscountries.Herstorywill hopefullyinspireeachofustonotjustappreciatethepeoplearoundus,buttorealizethatpeople havemoretotheirstorythanmanythink.