feeling of first...

It was grade 4, my teacher was Mrs. Brieghtup. So fitting for such a positive lady.
I just moved to a new school. My folks had a talk with her earlier in the year when I started, about how things were in my old school. Apparently, in my old school, the teacher there had a thing against shy kids, she felt that it implied much more that just shyness. The old teacher kept me after school a few times to do extra homework and it annoyed me. Sometimes I just sneaked off when she wasn't looking and walked home a few times.

So one day in my new school, Mrs. Brieghtup started class again after recess with a pop-quiz.
Math.
Everyone grumbled, and begrudgingly handed their papers in. It was basically based on the lesson we had the day before. After she tallied the marks, she stood in front of the class and said she was a bit disappointed with the class because we should all know this, a lot of us still did well but we should have all gotten perfect!
She did say though, that there was only one person who had a perfect score...
Me!
How awesome is that?! I did have a feeling that I did well on it because I understood it all.
But what shocked me was how she took the time to especially announce it to the class.
What shocked me more is that she had a special prize for the person that got perfect, and I remember I think she gave me a necklace (I think she had a whole bunch of prizes in her desk).
When she gave me my prize, she also gave me a hug and said she was proud of me. I had a funny feeling that she did it that way just to prove that the old teacher was wrong, to prove it to me, and also my folks, despite what the old teacher made me feel like.  But, that quiz, was all me on my own.

Being shy, I tend to be more comfortable with not being placed first, and feeling uncomfortable when I am being put first or if the attention is focused on me, so much that I often deflect it, or make excuses for it. How terribly wrong is it to get used to that feeling about one self.
I mean, how can anyone else put you first if you do not think you deserve it?!
Have to constantly remind myself of those feelings of being put first, until that becomes my comfort zone.

Thank you Mrs. Brieghtup!