Wednesday, February 08, 2012

My Friend

I know I haven't been in the blogging world since...who knows, and I can't promise things will be any different after this post, but I just had to write something.

Today I heard some tragic news. A high school math teacher of mine, and friend, passed away last night. Her name was Nancy Anderson, or Mrs. Anderson to most of us. She had been battling cancer for some time. It went away for a while but in the end, cancer did what cancer does best. But for all of us--family, friends, teachers, parents, and fellow students of hers--that isn't the way we see it, or at least, not how I see it.

Nancy was a person who followed Jesus more closely and had a devotion to God that surpassed anyone I've ever met. Her love for God flowed through everything. You could see it in the way she spoke. In the way she taught. In the way she prayed, laughed and joked. She was one of the first people to help me see that God is not just a "spiritual idea" on how to live a moral life. He created all things, therefore, he is and is in all things. There was no "sacred and secular" to Nancy. It was all sacred.

After high school I would still come by and visit Mrs. Anderson and some of the other faculty and leave her notes if she wasn't there. She always wrote me notes in reply and I still have one of them. It's written on classic "teacher paper," which is paper with apples, letters, and rulers all over it and for some reason, daffodils too. All it says is that she's thankful for my notes and hopes I'm doing well in school. Nothing too important, at least, not important enough to have kept in my wallet since 2006, but today I am extremely happy to see that note. Especially the, "Love, Mrs. A." at the bottom.

The last time I saw Mrs. Anderson was when she came to my bridal shower in August. I was so surprised to see her there because her health had been getting worse, which made me even more appreciative of her.
This is a photo from the bridal shower. Sorry it's a bit blurry.


There is far too much for me to write about this wonderful lady and the way she impacted my life, and this post is definitely not doing justice but when I think about Mrs. Anderson I don't dwell on how she died but on all the beautiful things about her. Never have I known a person to be cherished by everyone she came in contact with, and to love God as much as her. Even though today was sad, I know that she's dancing in heaven with Jesus....and teaching everyone else the quadratic equation.

I love you, Mrs. Anderson.