Hershey Kisses by Aoife

Hershey Kisses by Aoife - June 2021 Scholarship Essay

I have loved the smell of Hershey Kisses since I was 6 years old. Why? Because of Mrs. Rudel. Mrs. Rudel was my teacher for both first and second grade, and she has been my favorite, most influential teacher that I have ever had since the day I stepped into her classroom with my pink princess backpack.
Every morning when I walked into Mrs. Rudel’s classroom, I felt as though I was being transported into another world. It was the place where I was giddy with excitement and could never stop smiling. Mrs. Rudel made coming to school so much fun every day. We practiced our weekly spelling words in the shaving cream that she spread across our desks and we were quizzed on these words by playing “smartie bingo” later in the week. She was always so excited to teach us, and because of her positive energy, we were always excited to learn.
Mrs. Rudel did not just prioritize our education, she prioritized us. She was like another mother to every single person in my class. She was genuinely proud of us for every small achievement we shared with her, even if it wasn’t an academic success. She would take pictures of us in the costumes that she helped make for our class plays or with our “reading buddy” (which was just a smiley face drawn onto our pointer finger so we wouldn’t lose our place while reading books).
I learned a lot during the two years in Mrs. Rudel’s class, but the most important lessons that she taught were not related to our academic curriculum at all. She taught us that life is better when you realize that the little things and moments are actually the big ones. She taught us to be respectful and kind to one another and to always remember that we are important in our own unique ways. Yet the most influential lesson I learned from Mrs. Rudel was to love, in all aspects of my life.
Looking back, we did not realize that Mrs. Rudel was establishing these valuable mindsets in us at the time. However, I will be forever grateful to her for shaping me into the person that I am today. I try my best to be kind to everyone, I keep my eyes open to see all the love that is embedded in the world around me, I say “I love you” too much, and I do things out of love rather than out of obligation.
Now, every time I get offered a Hershey Kiss, I smile: remembering the many Hershey Kisses Mrs. Rudel would pass out during class to remind us that we are loved. So, to whoever is reading this today: I hope you can romanticize your life and fall in love with it like I was taught to by the most influential teacher I have ever had: Mrs. Rudel.