i was here

"The hearts I have touched will be the proof that I leave that I made a difference."

Andie felt so tired but she could see the schoolhouse less than a mile in front of her and soldiered on. She thought back to twenty years ago, the first time she'd made this journey, and how tired she had been then. Life comes full circle like that, she guessed. So Andie trudged on, hoping that her legs wouldn't give out on her before she got to the door. Hoping that if they did, the kids inside wouldn't see her. Hopes that became obsolete as a sudden flood of children swept out of the door of the schoolhouse and began charging towards her.

Despite her fatigue, Andie found herself grinning ear from ear and picking up her pace to meet the kids. As she walked, she did a quick head count. Fifteen. Today, they were all here which was a bit of a miracle. The kids reached her and the hugs pulled her down to the ground. Andie didn't have the energy to get up, so she just let the kids smother her down and drown her tickles. Once again, she marveled at the joy these kids could have when they had so little. The instructor, Mr. Joe as the kids called him, followed by the kids and gently began pulling them off of Andie. 

Joe, of course, fully realized that Andie was exhausted. Andie had handpicked him to secede her after she could no longer count on making the trek everyday. Joe had been one of her star pupils and one of the few that remained in the area. There was so much potential in him. She knew he would do amazing things and every time she saw him, she only could hope she had given him enough of an academic foundation not to get drowned in the big bad world.  He certainly had the bravery and intelligence to handle anything that came at him. 

Joe helped Andie to her feet, pulling her up into a strong hug. He pulled back but let his arm remain around her waist, practically carrying her into the schoolhouse and to the seat at the front of the room. Andie looked around the space fondly while Joe tried to calm the children down some. To most people, there wasn't much here to look at. Bare dirty walls. No real door to speak of. Falling apart, ancient desks. No books. Just a room full of eager children and their weary teacher. But the kids that had come through this door had changed Andie's life. Including this fifteen, there had been over 150 kids that came through this door at some point, although only half had "graduated". 

Andie had tried to keep tabs on as many as she could. She would check on the girls from time to time, play with their kids, and help them cook dinner. She would eye their babies to make sure they weren't falling prey to any number of sicknesses that pervaded the area, and if she saw the slightest sign quietly leave whatever medications she happened to have with her. She would also check out their husbands, looking for any signs of domestic issues. But, for the most part, her girls had heeded her lessons. Their children were healthy and their husbands were respectful and kind.

The boys, of course, had succeeded in ways the girls were not able to in this country. Just a fact of life that would take more than a simple schoolteacher to change. Her boys were well-respected everywhere they went. Leading people with their voices, inspiring people with their talents, or simply raising a new generation of thoughtful children. 

Andie had never married, never had her own kids. Her friends and family never seemed to understand this. At her age, they all seemed so concerned about her missing legacy, that she would leave nothing behind to stand as a testament of her existence. But Andie knew better. She looked around this room, its dusty but sturdy walls, at these children so ready to learn, and she knew that her legacy would last lifetimes. That these kids and all the ones before were changed by a simple girl that had walked into a quiet village twenty years ago, approached a group of kids with a stack of old books, and offered to teach them how to read.