Photos by Scott Walker

Anyone who has driven down Memorial Boulevard while parents have been dropping off or picking up their kids at Middle Tennessee Christian School over the past two decades has encountered Claudia Russell.

Ms. Russell has served as the traffic officer there since 1993, and she conveys a sense of ultimate relaxation and peace as her fluid, almost yoga-like motions guide the masses of automobiles through that busy section of road every morning and afternoon when school is in session.

“It is a relaxing time,” Russell said. “I’m blessed to be here.

“I just pretend I am a red light, and count the seconds,” she continues. “I try and hold Memorial no longer than a minute, a minute and a half at the most, then I let about 30 cars out of the school.”

During her time directing traffic a song in her heart helps pass the time and keep her mood positive.

“I sing a lot of hymns while I am out there,” said Russell, who has also developed an affinity for contemporary Christian music. “I love Matthew West and Big Daddy Weave.”

Russell originally got hired as a substitute, but after 3 months on the job, she gained a regular gig at the MTCS intersection, where she still works 21 years later.

“A lot of people have said they have watched my hair turn from blonde to white,” Russell said with a smile.

She said “the elements are critical, but I am only out here for 30 minutes at a time.”

Russell’s other job is for Caris Healthcare, a local hospice company, but when she started that job, she insisted that the hours there accommodate her traffic control duties as well; the company had no issue with working around her crossing guard schedule.

While most automobiles pass through the MTCS intersection slowly and cautiously, the traffic officer has seen some fender benders and wild road behavior over the years.

“One day, it looked like a tractor trailer was about to run right over a car . . . this gentleman in a Town Car pulled right out in front of him and was being scooted by the tractor trailer,” said Russell.

Watching Russell, it is clear she does not seem to be worried about much. Motorists can tell she is in the zone, calmly signaling the cars to pass one after the other, smooth hand motion after smooth hand motion, day after day, year after year.

And remember, the next time you are going through a school zone, slow down; also remember that a repetitive task done with the right attitude, even if you have done it for decades, can still be peaceful and relaxing if you allow it to be.