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We asked you, dear readers to share your stories about the woman who inspires you and we'll feature the best entries on Rediff.com.
This is what Rediff reader Heera Nawaz shared. You can share your stories too!
Heera Nawaz with her teacher Kamala Louvelle.
"The woman I admire is my former teacher, Miss Kamala Shanmugham, now after marriage, Mrs Kamala Louvelle,' writes 57-year-old Heera Nawaz from Bengaluru.
"You may ask why! Well, for many reasons, but I guess the basic reason I adore her is because she is such a gem of a person.
"My dad would tell me, 'True education is what you remember after all those exams.'
"Indeed, all that nitty-gritty about wars and their dates have been forgotten, but what stayed on are things like when Mrs Kamala taught our class how to write the most beautiful essays.
"(She taught us) to write to express and not to impress, avoid bombastic language and be simple -- writing what we mean and meaning what we write.
'Yes, Mrs Kamala's education was education of the heart where she positively made us better human beings.
'She didn't do it by lecturing, but by merely leading an upright life herself and setting an example for us. She became our role model.
'She surely proved that 'the good teacher teaches, the spiritual teacher preaches, but the successful teacher reaches.'
'Indeed, she did manage to reach our hearts and touch our souls with her love and compassion.
'48 years have passed since Mrs Kamala taught us in the fifth standard at Bishop Cotton Girls' School, Bengaluru.
'Normally, it is 'out of sight, out of mind', and within no time one forgets the teachers who have left the school.
'But though Mrs Kamala left the school, I could never forget her.
'(Nor could I forget) her big bindis and colourful saris accessorised with the most amazing jewellery.
'Which is why I stayed in touch with her. I wrote her letters and when one of my articles on her was published in the Chicken Soup for the Soul series, she was quick to show appreciation and gratitude.
'We became really good friends and the teacher-student rapport faded into something more informal and friendly.
'On social media platforms, she is the first person to like my posts.
'According to the Facebook admin, of all my 2,000 friends, she has registered the most number of times for liking my posts.
'It is very heartening and I now see it as a form of validation. If she is to like my post, it means it has passed the acid test of what an English teacher would approve of.
'Once a teacher, always a teacher, now Mrs Kamala is like a close friend who once jokingly said, 'Yes, we teachers are not in it for the income. We are in it for the outcome.'
'Yes, Mrs Kamala, on this day I want the world to know how wonderful you really are. You are like a true well-wisher, an elder sister, an aunt, and always a friend.
'Thank you from the bottom of my heart.'
We ask you, dear readers if you were to name one woman in your life who has been a huge inspiration to you, who would that be?
Share a photograph of this incredible woman and a small write-up on why and how she inspires you.
You can mail the write-up and pics to us at getahead@rediff.co.in (subject: The Woman I Admire) along with your NAME, AGE and LOCATION, if possible.
We'll publish the best responses right here on Rediff.com.
