Miss Harris, Is Your Heart Happy?

Lucy had an out of this world kindergarten teacher. Her life was devoted to the children in her classroom. She was there from early in the morning until late in the evening...even in the summer. She was tall, thin, elegant, sweetly beautiful, soft spoken, African American and full of the Spirit. She called her class "her sweethearts". She read them the book Love You Forever and told them that just like the mom in the book she would always be there for them. That if they needed her when they were 10, when they were 15, when they were 30 or 50....it didn't matter...she would be there for them. She never raised her voice. She always knew where each child was academically...each day where they were and what needed to be worked on.

I often volunteered in the classroom and so many times her words to those kindergartners made me cry. She was teaching them all the basics they needed to start their journey into the world of education but she was also teaching them about life. They came out of her classroom with ideas about decency, kindness, thoughtfulness, gentleness and self control. She often asked the children if what was happening in the classroom would make Miss Harris's heart happy? The kids would answer honestly and if something needed to be corrected, they would correct it.

The week before Martin Luther King day I was volunteering in the classroom and Miss Harris read her kindergartners a book about Martin Luther King's life. She talked about what school would have been like if they had been born when MLK was a little boy. This was a classroom that was beautifully integrated and she looked around the room at all the white children and named each one of them and told them that she couldn't have been their teacher then. Then she looked at those children sitting close together whose backgrounds racially were not the same and named them and said that back then they couldn't have been friends. She looked directly at Lucy and her friend, Kiara, and said that they couldn't have been friends. Then she looked them all in the eye and asked that if Martin Luther King walked into this classroom today, would this make his heart happy? Would your friendships make his heart happy? Would he be happy that I was teaching all of you in this classroom? The children exploded with YES! Martin Luther King's heart would be happy! I had to turn away. Tears were running down my cheeks.

Tomorrow is Martin Luther King Day and we are preparing as a nation to inaugurate our first African American president. I am again feeling what I felt that day in Miss Harris's classroom. Pride, a fullness of heart, hope, and excitement about what the future holds.

Miss Harris, is your heart happy? Martin Luther King, is your heart happy?

I wish I had those children to answer again for me. I want to hear their explosive response. But I know I will get to hear that explosive response from the American people on Tuesday.

Oh, how i wish I could see the smile on Martin Luther King's face....I would also give anything to see the smile on Miss Harris's face.