[Applause]
nowadays you don't hear much about
teachers except when it comes time to
strike but for most people
teachers played a very important role
for at least 12 years of their lives
teachers were the people who prepared
you for life or at least going on to the
next grade
they all had this special teacher aura
about them you all remember that when
teachers were just the most special
thing
which set them apart from other mortal
beings they never had first names
you know never never had first names
they never did normal things like you
and me like
eating in a public restaurant and god
forbid should you see them
in a public restaurant you just die if
you saw your teacher
much less go to the bathroom
i remember when i first saw the teachers
lounge and there was a toilet in there i
couldn't believe it
and there was always one teacher who
stuck out as your favorite
be it the teacher who made you work the
hardest the one who gave you all the
breaks
or maybe the one who just brought out
the best in you
today on the oprah winfrey show we're
going to be reuniting people with their
favorite teacher
some who have not seen each other for 10
20 and even 30 years but first
i'd like to tell you about my favorite
teacher when i was in the fourth grade
i was i ran home the first day of the
fourth grade to tell my dad
that i had the best teacher anybody
could ever have her name was mrs duncan
and i
during the fourth grade i wanted to be a
fourth grade teacher because
of mrs duncan and i haven't seen mrs
duncan since then and mrs duncan is here
today
mary duncan this is
duncan
[Music]
i need some clinics
well it's good to see you bless you
that's your heart oh we're the one who
is so honored
well i don't have my mic you don't have
oh you need a mic on
sit up mrs duncan i'm sorry this has
disoriented me terribly
well thank you thank you rosie i didn't
okay okay my mascara is running sorry
well well you know what i didn't i i
hardly know what to say
bless your heart do you remember do you
remember you know why i loved you so
much because you
because you always let me be devotion
bless your heart
and we'd have graham crackers and mrs
duncan
they meet me i can't believe i'm crying
like this but mrs duncan
would let me lead devotion and remember
when i was going to be a missionary and
i used to collect money on the
playground
i'm sure over remember so many happiness
more than i but i do remember you were
just ideal
such an ideal student i was like oh my
goodness
yes yes that's great that's great
unusual
well if i had had a class full of
students like oprah
i would have been floating on air so
what was i like i don't i don't really
remember it
i do remember you that i remember you
was such a fluent
reader and the children in the classroom
didn't mind they were not
jealous i think they were impressed with
you
um was hardly harris in that class
that name sounds familiar oh okay okay i
don't mean to put you on the spot it's
one i couldn't forget
mine but you were such a fluent reader
they enjoyed listening and i certainly
did
and you would read poetry read stories
and i think the children look forward to
hearing you
you do you were not on the playground
with me though they gave me hell out
there
they gave me hell out there so was i
your favorite that year
oh of course but i couldn't let anybody
know
well did you know that for the longest
time i wanted to be a fourth grade
teacher because of you
my i was not aware of inspiring
anyone at that time i guess my mind was
really on
trying to work with the students and
learn long term
oh yes yes i never did get it in your
class long division i was a fluent
reader and read a lot but i wasn't very
good in math
that's funny i don't recall anything you
had difficulty with
really it seems to me you grasped ideas
readily did i talk a lot you know you
were quiet and
furthermore if anybody else was talking
you would put your finger to your lips
and remind them that uh-uh you should be
listening
and when a task was assigned
you would kind of look around to make
sure everyone else was following through
really yes was i bossy
no no no no because i remember on the
playground getting accused of being
bossy a lot
you know they didn't complain in the
was classroom i was not aware of that
and mrs driver had mrs driver in the
third grade
yes that's right that's my sister-in-law
yeah i knew y'all were related
yes my husband's sister do you know not
until this day in reading the cards did
i know
did i know that your name was mary
because we were just talking
earlier i mean i had no idea that you
had a name other than mrs duncan
bless your heart mary alice oh my
goodness and so you would go home and
you had
children and family and you did normal
stuff too oh yes
finally and so over all these years when
you
when you first heard that i had like
done something in life where
did you know that it was me yes i kept
it with you without your being aware of
it
oh well my this is something ain't it
[Music]
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