Clyde’s Corner

Mrs. Anderson’s patience and encouragement paid off—in the long run

by Clyde Whitaker

Hello again everyone.  I feel obliged to start off my column this month with a “thank you” to all of you who have told me how much you enjoy reading my column.  It is very humbling and I really do appreciate your kind words and support.  In fact, it makes me smile when some of you tell me that Clyde’s Corner is the first thing you look for as soon as you receive the Stockbridge Community News.  That’s pressure—LOL!

The truth is, our small, local community has been blessed with some outstanding writers, including Alex Weddon, Patricia C. Zick, Allison Spooner, Patrice Johnson and John Robinson, to name a few. These people have all written books! I’m just in the tee ball league compared to these major leaguers!

As I think about my process, I just write stories, mostly from my past, that I hope people find interesting.

In school, spelling, history, and sports were my favorite classes and pastimes.  Sad to say, English was at the bottom of my priorities.

One of my English teachers in my senior year of high school was Mrs. Jean Anderson, a very patient and caring teacher.  She tried her best to help me understand verbs and adjectives, adverbs, prepositions, and more. Even with all of her efforts back then, these concepts never did sink in. I was lucky to pass with a “D” average.  I guess she gave me some credit for trying.

Today I would like to think that Mrs. Anderson would be proud to see the interest I have taken in writing since high school.

I hope to continue writing stories you enjoy, and I want to thank the Stockbridge Community News staff for all of their help in getting “Clyde’s Corner” published each month.

Thank you again Mrs. Anderson.  With every passing year, I appreciate you more and more.

That’s something to think about, for those of you in high school now. Don’t ever give up if you really want to try something—even if it is years later.

At Stockbridge High in the 1970s, Mrs. Jean Anderson tried her best to help Clyde understand grammar and parts of speech, and he believes she gave him credit for trying. Photo from the 1973 Panther yearbook.

Clyde Whitaker is a 1973 Stockbridge graduate. He and his wife, Mary, raised four children in Stockbridge, and they still reside in the Stockbridge area