My Fifteen Minutes of Fame
So, a handful of people at school today noticed that I was on the cover of the local newspaper...
OK, a lot of people at school were aware I was on the cover of the Richmond Hill Liberal :). To start with, a representative from the Liberal left a copy of the paper for me at the school office and the secretary delivered it to me in the staffroom this morning with a huge grin. Other teachers had been surprised to pick up their paper this morning and see me, too. By the time I came back into the staffroom at first recess there were four copies of the Liberal scattered on the tables, though I have no idea where they came from. I got a lot of teasing all day about fame and stardom and autographs :). Though the article got favourable comments, it was the full-size photo on the front page that got most of the attention.
During yard duty in the primary yard this morning, little Gr. 1 students were coming up to me and saying, "Mrs. Durno! I saw your picture in the newspaper this morning!". Students in my Gr. 5 class showed up with the paper in hand and we did an impromptu media studies lesson on what it takes to get a profile in the newspaper. I hung the photo and article up in my classroom. My favorite comment of the day was a girl who came up to me in the hallway and exclaimed, "Mrs. Durno! I didn't -know- you were a world-famous musician!". Heh, you and the world both, darlin' :).
But my most moving moment came at lunch, when I stopped at a library computer to take a peak at LiveJournal to catch up on my comments and found this letter there:
"Hi,
My name is Jana Fowle (nee Faria) and my grade 5 teacher at John XIII in Unionville was Miss Drury.
She looks suspiciously like Alison Durno.
Miss Drury was one of my favourite teachers of all time (including university!) She sang to us every day with her guitar, and I remember many of the songs:
One Tin Soldier
Apples and Bananas
Fish n' Chips n' Vinegar
She also encouraged my writing, and I've never stopped. I don't know if she remembers me - my name is pronounced Yawna - but if she does, I hope she writes back!
All the best,
Mrs. Jana Fowle"
Teachers wait their entire careers to read letters like this. Students come into our care for ten months and then they're gone and often it's hard to measure what sort of influence you've had on them. Jana was in one of my very first classes, probably second or third year of teaching (she'll have to help me be more specific :)). That would have been 17 or 18 years ago. I was Miss Drury then, as I hadn't married yet to become Mrs. Durno. Hard to imagine that little girl I can still picture is married with a university degree, but, of course, she has to be in her late twenties now. Strange to realize, too, that when I was teaching her in the mid-80's I was younger than she is now!
So, Jana, if you are reading this, I -do- remember you and I -do- remember what an expressive writer you were (and I'm sure still are!). I'm assuming you tracked down my journal by following the URL in the Liberal article today from the Urban Tapestry site over to here. I can't tell you how much your letter means to me and I will treasure it. I will answer your letter in e-mail very soon. Reading your letter really lit up my day.
Was amused, too, by the list of songs Jana listed above. In the light of "the more things change, the more they stay the same" I took my guitar to school yesterday and taught my new class how to sing "Apples and Bananas". The song is as sure-fire with Gr. 5's now as it was with Gr. 5's then :).
The second most common comment I heard today besides "I saw your picture in the paper today!" was "You should get a copy of that front page framed!". I think I'll do that, take it to a professional framer. Hey, you aren't front page news every day. Any ideas out there for the most effective way to frame a tabloid-sized newspaper page?
OK, a lot of people at school were aware I was on the cover of the Richmond Hill Liberal :). To start with, a representative from the Liberal left a copy of the paper for me at the school office and the secretary delivered it to me in the staffroom this morning with a huge grin. Other teachers had been surprised to pick up their paper this morning and see me, too. By the time I came back into the staffroom at first recess there were four copies of the Liberal scattered on the tables, though I have no idea where they came from. I got a lot of teasing all day about fame and stardom and autographs :). Though the article got favourable comments, it was the full-size photo on the front page that got most of the attention.
During yard duty in the primary yard this morning, little Gr. 1 students were coming up to me and saying, "Mrs. Durno! I saw your picture in the newspaper this morning!". Students in my Gr. 5 class showed up with the paper in hand and we did an impromptu media studies lesson on what it takes to get a profile in the newspaper. I hung the photo and article up in my classroom. My favorite comment of the day was a girl who came up to me in the hallway and exclaimed, "Mrs. Durno! I didn't -know- you were a world-famous musician!". Heh, you and the world both, darlin' :).
But my most moving moment came at lunch, when I stopped at a library computer to take a peak at LiveJournal to catch up on my comments and found this letter there:
"Hi,
My name is Jana Fowle (nee Faria) and my grade 5 teacher at John XIII in Unionville was Miss Drury.
She looks suspiciously like Alison Durno.
Miss Drury was one of my favourite teachers of all time (including university!) She sang to us every day with her guitar, and I remember many of the songs:
One Tin Soldier
Apples and Bananas
Fish n' Chips n' Vinegar
She also encouraged my writing, and I've never stopped. I don't know if she remembers me - my name is pronounced Yawna - but if she does, I hope she writes back!
All the best,
Mrs. Jana Fowle"
Teachers wait their entire careers to read letters like this. Students come into our care for ten months and then they're gone and often it's hard to measure what sort of influence you've had on them. Jana was in one of my very first classes, probably second or third year of teaching (she'll have to help me be more specific :)). That would have been 17 or 18 years ago. I was Miss Drury then, as I hadn't married yet to become Mrs. Durno. Hard to imagine that little girl I can still picture is married with a university degree, but, of course, she has to be in her late twenties now. Strange to realize, too, that when I was teaching her in the mid-80's I was younger than she is now!
So, Jana, if you are reading this, I -do- remember you and I -do- remember what an expressive writer you were (and I'm sure still are!). I'm assuming you tracked down my journal by following the URL in the Liberal article today from the Urban Tapestry site over to here. I can't tell you how much your letter means to me and I will treasure it. I will answer your letter in e-mail very soon. Reading your letter really lit up my day.
Was amused, too, by the list of songs Jana listed above. In the light of "the more things change, the more they stay the same" I took my guitar to school yesterday and taught my new class how to sing "Apples and Bananas". The song is as sure-fire with Gr. 5's now as it was with Gr. 5's then :).
The second most common comment I heard today besides "I saw your picture in the paper today!" was "You should get a copy of that front page framed!". I think I'll do that, take it to a professional framer. Hey, you aren't front page news every day. Any ideas out there for the most effective way to frame a tabloid-sized newspaper page?