“The most painful state of
being is remembering the future, particularly the one you'll never have.”― Søren
Kierkegaard
I tried to think of some inspirational, thought provoking introduction to
the comments below…but everything came out soaked in depression and sadness, so
I simply choose to leave you with the above quote, and the remarks I made at my Aunt, Sherrye
Chambers' funeral.
For those that are receiving these for the first time, it is my hope that the memories and comments are below can remind you of fond times that you also shared with this wonderful person, and that they can also inspire you to live an extraordinary life, just as she did.
I
guess you could say I had a normal childhood… days spent at Northside Baptist
Pre-K, afternoons watching Barney the dinosaur and playing with my hot wheels
cars. I rode my tricycle and dug in the
dirt. But, when I was 5 the greatest influence in my life walked through the
door at 2427 Madison Drive and, much to my mother’s dismay, I haven’t been the
same since.
Sherrye
Chambers was back in Tifton and I was instantly her protégé…her “little boy” it
impart wisdom and knowledge…My family are all rolling their eyes at that last
statement.
But
Sherrye did teach me so much…
She
taught me that there was more on TV than a purple dinosaur. While other kids
were learning their ABC’s on Sesame Street, I was catching up on the latest
escapades of Blanche, Rose, Dorothy, and Sophia on the Golden Girls…Learning
how to give a Julia Sugarbaker-style tirade on Designing Women, and laughing at
the antics of Vicki Lawrence and Carol Burnette on re-runs of Mama’s Family…all
while piled up in Sherrye’s bed with 2 Pekingese dogs, our very best good
friend Sheemo, aka Sheen Mitchell Rodgers, and my grandmother.
She
Imparted on me her taste in music…While other 5 year olds were forcing their
parents to listen to kiddie sing-alongs and Disney soundtracks I was taught to
appreciate Journey, Bob Segar, Michael Bolton, Aaron Neville, Whitney Houston,
Mariah Carey, Celine Dion, Cher…but most importantly…the best songs ever
written were Sherrye by Frankie Valley and the Four Seasons and Oh Sherry by
Steve Perry. I can still hear her telling me “Little boy, this was the best
song ever written, and the only way to listen to it is with all the windows
rolled down, sunroof back, and volume maxed out” … we would listen to that song
endlessly and fly down I75 letting the wind blow through the car…and other
times while my grandmother was cooking supper Sherrye would play another one of
her favorites – the cover of “Hold Me, Thrill Me, Kiss Me” by Gloria Estefan
and we would dance through the Den…Me standing on a beige ottoman so I could
hold her hands.
Sherrye
also taught me to drive. On one of our adventures we were returning home, and
as we turned on to Camellia drive she scooped me up and put me in her lap and
said “Little boy, lets teach you how to drive!” we made it about a block before
I jerked the wheel to the right and we ended up in the ditch. Later, I was 17
and she and I were taking off for a week in North Georgia. Dad told Sherrye and
I both that I could drive on 75 to the Tanger Outlet Mall, but we had to get
off there and Sherrye had to drive us through Atlanta. Sherrye rolled her eyes
but she obliged. As we pulled back on the interstate in McDonnough…sherrye now
at the wheel...I remember her pulling the seat up as close to the steering
wheel as she could go, turning up the radio and saying “little boy, THIS is how
you drive through Atlanta” and proceeded to hit 90 miles an hour in the HOV lane
screaming and gesturing at anyone who got in her way” I’m pretty sure that’s
not the lesson that dad intended for me to have, but it’s the one I got and my
friends will tell you that it’s the one that stuck.
She
trained me to be a stealth shopper. She would often quote Sheen and say “little
boy, if you think you want something, but aren’t sure put it back…then come
shopping again tomorrow…if it’s still there it was meant to be and you need to
buy it”. There was never a better shopper than Sherrye…I quickly learned to
appreciate a TJ Maxx, Tuesday Morning, and a Belk’s Two-Day sale.
In
relation to shopping Sherrye also created her own style. There was the year,
when she was teaching at Ben-Hill High she made it a personal goal to never
wear the same outfit twice…I remember coming by after class at ABAC and my
grandmother declaring “Do you know how many pairs of Capri Pants Sherrye Has!?
I counted them today and she has 180 pairs!!” I just laughed because that was
Sherrye…determined to do something her way, regardless of what you thought. The
last time Sherrye and I went shopping I bought this bold dark plaid shirt, here
at the Tifton Belk’s, and Sherrye shared with me that when she taught in
Commerce she had gone to Atlanta to Rich’s Department Store to buy a pair of
plaid pants, very similar to the shirt I had, and when she made it to school
that day the one person in that school that she couldn’t stand had on the same
pair of pants, and it made Sherrye furious…that afternoon she threw them in the
trash. During Football season, if you
didn’t watch the Bulldogs play on Saturday and went to church on Sunday, all
you had to do was look at Sherrye to see if the Bulldogs had won. If they had a
victory Sherrye was decked Head to toe in Georgia bulldogs. Mascot jewelry, a
red shirt and black plaid pants….and even a UGA purse at one point! Sherrye was
the dawgs biggest fan if they won, and their biggest critic if they lost. As a
kid I fondly remember her rule when the dogs played. She would turn on the TV
and mute the noise and then bring her clock radio in the den and turn on Larry
Munson and she and my grandfather would yell cheers and criticisms at the top
of her lungs.
Sherrye
also passed on her love of plants. While I may not be quite the gardener she
was, she was always so proud of her flowers & loved sharing them with
others. I remember digging in the dirt with her on time and suddenly 2 eyes
appeared. Just knowing it was a snake, Sherrye said “little boy, go get the gun
out of my bed side table” She fired a shot into the hole….that poor frog never
stood a chance. Many years later she decided to plant a rose garden next to my
grandfather’s shop. For a year or two she gathered beautiful roses of various
colors from that garden, but, by the third year my grandfather was tired of
mowing around it so he just plowed it over with his lawn mower…I am so thankful
that Sherrye had beautiful flowers once again at her funeral from all of our
wonderful family and friends.
I
could go on for hours about all the things Sherrye taught me…because that is
what she did. She was a teacher, and a dang good one. Sherrye was name Star
Teacher three different times, and was a Tift County Teacher of Excellence the
last year that she taught before cancer forced her into retirement. She had the
reputation of being the toughest chemistry and physical science teacher
around…but this was only because Sherrye knew that by pushing her students she
was not just preparing them to succeed in their secondary education, but that
once they passed her test, so to speak, they could excel at anything.
When
we realized that the end would a matter of days, I started trying to think what
I would say that would please Sherrye and mean something to her friends and
family…I wanted to impart her wisdom and give you all something to mentally
keep with you, and as I drove back to Tifton on Wednesday from a business trip
I was racking my brain thinking that I would never be able to capture what Sherrye’s
final teaching lesson would be to all of us today…and then, almost as if she
was in the passenger seat, I could hear her voice saying “Little boy, I
prepared you your whole life for this…you tell them to live like I taught you
to live…an extraordinary life.”
You
see, Sherrye gave everything, not just 100%, but 1000%. In her career, she
taught with the purpose of not just teaching science, but to also make an
impact on those kids’ lives. She didn’t just travel to the beach, but she and
her good friend Don Pearson would fly to amazing places like London,
Switzerland, and even Las Vegas to see Cher perform her final show. Sherrye
didn’t just go shopping; she bought everything in the store. She was over the
top, threw the best dinner parties, and made sure to make an impression
everywhere that she went. She lived an extraordinary life…and that is what she
would want to teach each and every one of you here today.
Sherrye
was my person…my greatest influence. I was her shadow from the time I was 5
years old, and ive never felt more lost in my life than I do at this moment…But
I know that I am the man I am today because of her. And I will go on to try and live the
extraordinary life that she would want because, as Hunter Thompson once wrote,
“Life should not be a journey to the grave with the intention of arriving
safely in a pretty and well preserved body, but rather to skid in broadside in
a cloud of smoke, thoroughly used up, totally worn out, and loudly proclaiming
"Wow! What a Ride!”
To
Aunt Sherrye: as you and Sheen always said…I love you more than my luggage…and
to all of our friends and family who sent calls, texts, and supported Sherrye
and us these past few years…we could never fully express our gratitude. Thank
you.
