Audio Bio: Rebecca Wood

But we wanted to ask her. So, we said, who’s been drawing on the walls? And Becky looks at us and says “Ghostie did it.” Apparently, Ghostie was her imaginary friend. 

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Rebecca: 

Hi, I’m Rebecca Wood and little me had a lot of little wisdoms. Advice from 4-year-old me is to always have someone to blame your actions on like I did with my ghost friend. 

Lorraine: 

This was after June after she finished school and we were sitting at the dining room table, and she said that she uh was done with school. I said, “Why?” She said, “Because I just finished preschool, and I know just what to teach.” 

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Rebecca: 

Another gem from little me don’t put in more work than you need to to achieve your goals. 

Paul: 

In 2007, we went camping in the Adirondacks and after we set the camper up. I took the kids for a walk so that there was nobody in the camper and Barb could get everything set up inside, so we went for a walk and it was getting kind of dark and we got turned around a little bit and I said something about maybe being lost a little bit and Becky being just shy of four years old says, “We have a head, right? We think about it we can figure it out.” So that was some pretty sage advice from a four-year-old. 

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Rebecca: 

Now this is the most philosophical thing I have ever and probably will ever say. 

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Barbara: 

Okay, so Becky went to Academy Street School and one of my best friends, Jeff Hoyt, uh works there as the Phys Ed teacher. And he told me that, you know, little quiet Becky, who never says anything, had quite a lot to say for Phys Ed. So, he puts them in order in their little squads and he tries to make sure he says everyone’s name and learns their names. And he goes, “Oh, I know you, Becky.” And after he puts her where he wants her to sit, she raises her hand and he’s like, “Yes?” “My name is Rebecca not Becky”, is what she had to say because she wanted… Rebecca Marie Wood, I think, is what she fully said, and she wanted to make sure that he and everyone else understood that that was her name. 

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Rebecca: 

If four-year-old me could stand up for myself, then so can you. 

Lorraine: 

Becky didn’t like to do homework after school. 

Rebecca: 

I still don’t. 

Lorraine: 

She hated it. And we had some cutting project to do for her homework and she wouldn’t do it. So, I held her hand, put her hand on mine, and I helped her cut the papers.  (faint laughter) 

Barbara: 

When in reality you did all the cutting. 

Lorraine: 

But she learned. 

Rebecca: 

No. 

Paul: 

To let Grandma do all the work. 

Rebecca: 

No, I did not. 

Lorraine: 

Eventually, she learned how to cut. 

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Rebecca: 

I have got nothing to say for this one other than five-year-old me had my grandma wrapped around my finger and I still do. 

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Barbara: 

Okay, so Becky again, you know, goes to school in my district where I’m a teacher. And it’s kindergarten, so you figure alright, things should be pretty easy. She comes home with homework on the first night and absolutely refused, refused to want to do it!

Rebecca: 

And you know what? I stand by that. 

Barbara: 

So, I’m like, I got to a point of frustration where I said, “Fine, you can talk to Mrs. Bonfiglio tomorrow and you explained to her that you didn’t want to do her homework.” Well, eventually this crying child sat down and did the homework, but still not without a fight. Not long after, honestly, just a few days later, or maybe a week, we go to my friend’s house Denise, who used to be a kindergarten teacher, and I say to Rebecca, “We’re going to Aunt Denise’s. We’re going to do our homework there. And you know what? She was a kindergarten teacher.” Well, it was like a whole new world opened up. She went skipping in the house and sat down with Aunt Denise, didn’t make a fuss, and did her homework. And then after that, apparently a switch flipped and she decided since Aunt Denise was a teacher, a kindergarten teacher, that it was okay to do homework. 

Rebecca: 

Yeah, 6th grade teacher wasn’t good enough for me. 

Barbara: 

Apparently, that’s what I said. I’m like I’m a teacher. You don’t teach kindergarten. 

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Rebecca: 

Don’t settle for less. 

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Jacob: 

When I was about 6 or 7 or so and Becky was four or five. I convinced her that she was adopted and I’m not entirely sure why, but I did, and she believed it. So that’s what matters. 

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Rebecca: 

The lesson here is to not believe everything you hear, especially from your older brother.  

Often times we tend to forget that little kids are still people with thoughts and ideas we might not have it all figured out as kids, but do we ever really have it all figured out? Don’t discredit the little things you taught yourself growing up. I still live by many of these little wisdoms from little me. 

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Rebecca: 

This was produced and edited by me, Rebecca Wood. Guests include Lorraine Cloughley, Barbara Wood, Paul Wood, and Jacob Wood. Visit our website me-us-u.org to find out more. 

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