To: Grown Up Reginald Eldridge, Jr
Date: May 11, 1994
I am 9 years old. I like to draw, write, make things, and watch Nature shows. My favorite t.v. programs are Safari and Saved by The Bell, The College years. My favorite foods are corn, pineapple and water.
I think a lot about Dinosaurs and the environment and art. When I grow up, I'd like to be an artist. In order to do that I know I would have to practice and practice drawing. I hope I will live to be 29 because tomorrow is not promised.
Today I traveled to Macon, Georgia for a ceremony at John H Heard Elementary School. Twenty years ago to the day, my fourth grade REACH class buried a time capsule. This letter was among the buried.
It's startling how much a person can change and still be the same. I have so much love for Dr. Michelle Gowan (formerly Michelle James), for how she believed in all of us so much, how she inspired us to be our greatest selves and to trust in our minds. I was blessed and fortunate to have such an educator in my life. Her influence validated, nurtured, and catalyzed my spirit.
So on this Mothers' Day, as I celebrate the woman who gave me birth, and the women in my life who are mothers to their own children, I would like to give special recognition to a woman whose energy and spirit made a world for a host of young minds to feel capable of doing great things. Dr. Gowan, you are a supreme blessing, and what you've given us will never be lost.
I am forever your grateful student.
Reginald
