On January 6, 1973, ABC Television debuted a series of educational short videos on a variety of subjects including math, science, history, grammar, civics, and economics. The first of these videos that aired was a math video titled, “Three is the Magic Number.” Following that several videos in each of the subject genres mentioned were aired and were not only entertaining, but valuable in the teaching and learning process for young people.

After graduating from SUNY Fredonia (’75), when teaching jobs were scarce, I began my career as substitute teaching. I worked over 350 (out of 370) days total the next two school years, before being offered a fourth grade long- term subbing assignment (maternity leave) at Fletcher School in Jamestown. As my first semester assignment was about to end, another teacher (sixth grade) from Fletcher was going out on her maternity leave. She went to the principal and volunteered to wait a couple weeks after her original date to leave until the teacher for whom I was subbing came back, suggesting I could stay in the assignment I started back in September, and the teacher I was in for could take the sixth-grade situation. At the end of the school year, the original sixth grade teacher announced her husband was offered a job transfer, a little closer to home, with better pay and benefits, so she resigned her employment in Jamestown, and I was offered the teacher vacancy position now available. That all happened in the ’77-78 school year.

The summer of ’78 was a busy one. I now had my own classroom, I knew what grade I’d be teaching, and I started collecting things I might be able to use in my classroom. Even though those ABC videos were out, I couldn’t tape them because I had no VCR then, I couldn’t buy them, because my contract was for just over $9,000.00 and I had to pay rent, student loans, car insurance, buy work clothes, food, and other incidentals of living on my own, so there was little left for a lot of extra things I could’ve used to supplement my classroom. It wasn’t that way for very long, as I met Sally in ’79, we got married in ’80, and we eventually purchased a VCR and some cheap tapes which I could use to tape some of the Schoolhouse Rock Videos that pertained to my grade level.

I love to write, evidenced by my longevity associated with this column, so the Grammar videos were ones I focused on taping first. One of my favorites in that genre was “Unpack Your Adjectives.” [My very favorite was the story of Rufus Xavier Sarsaparilla (pronouns)].

I still have trouble with punctuation rules and placements, run-on sentences, and my overuse of capital letters. I’m not Shakespeare, Barrett, Hemmingway, Dickens. or any other prolific writer, but I try to express my thoughts about topics, ideas, situations, and circumstances, and of experiences I’ve been blessed to have had (some I still have), and people, memories, and even my faults too. I’ve tried to use music lyrics, quotes, other educators, authors, coaches, motivational speakers, to pass on things that I’ve learned, or that have meant something to me, in my life’s journey, hoping it may help others too. (Once a teacher, always a teacher.) One of the things I’ve tried to make sure I don’t do, or much anyway, is use the same words repeatedly in whatever I write (this column, Op-Ed pieces, my Christmas letter, sports narratives, and more), so pronouns, adverbs, adjectives, all types of words that paint a better picture of nouns, verbs, and other adjectives and adverbs, are huge in how I try to prepare what I want to say, and how I want to say it.

A big part of today’s piece deals with adjectives and my constant referrals to my Thesaurus (I still have a paperback Roget’s in my set of books), so, I’m unpacking many adjectives, synonymous with five selected describing words.

Word number one is Selfless. The definition (from Oxford Languages) for this word is, “concerned more with the needs and wishes of others than with one’s own.” Synonyms of the word selfless include generosity, kindness, philanthropy, altruism, charitable, noble, humanitarian, empathy, mercifulness, and civility.

Word two is Ardent. Ardent as defined by Oxford Languages, is “enthusiastic, passionate, burning, or glowing.” Other synonyms for the word ardent might include avid, fervent, fierce, impassioned, intense, keen, vehement, zealous, agog, fiery.

Word number three is the word Loving. The definition of the Loving, according to Oxford Languages is, “feeling or showing love or great care.” A list of synonyms you could use as substitutes for the word loving might include, affectionate, fond, devoted, adoring, doting, benevolent, amiable, warm, attentive, and earnest.

Word four of my selected words is Loyal. Loyal, defined by Oxford Languages, is “giving or showing firm and constant support or allegiance to a person or institution.” Some words synonymous with Loyal include, faithful, true, truehearted, devoted, staunch, steadfast, trustworthy, dependable, dutiful, and believing.

The last word selected for discussion is Yearn, which is really a verb, but it works well with the other four words just discussed. Yearn, defined by Oxford Languages, is, “having an intense feeling of longing for something, typically something that one has lost or been separated from.” If describing a person yearning, it could mean them never giving up on themselves or someone else, convincing others to never give up on themselves, or the feeling/desire to do as much as possible for others.

Each one of the five selected words, and all their synonyms, might be equated to ingredients in a “people” recipe, which, if mixed within us, hopefully will help everyone be better people, people we’d like our children to be, people we choose as friends, and people to admire. I know one person who has all these traits, and lives by them, every day of her life. I don’t tell her this nearly enough, though.

Ironically, if you took the first letter of each word selected for discussion, they’d spell out the name of the person I admire most, the person I wish I could be more like, the person whose name, or even picture, that could be added to the list of synonyms for each of the five words in today’s narrative. She’s the epitome of all these words combined. She’s amazing in who and what she is, to and for me, and many others. (Incidentally, she’s having a birthday this coming Wednesday, so if you see her in-person, on Facebook, or want to call or text, wish her the best, as she celebrates the beginning of her next “Trip Around the Sun.” And from me, Thank you, Sally, for being who you are. Have a Happy Birthday! I love you!!)