This past week there were three particularly touching moments in my life. Of course first would have to be going to the ultrasound to see new baby girl Courington posing for the camera. All appears to be well and she waved hello to us. We are thrilled to have a new granddaughter. You know whether a boy or a girl, to see that perfect little spine, hands, fingers and toes, that is the important thing.
This past week, of course, was the end of the school year. As with most schools, we have honors and awards day. Our 8th grade class, which is our "senior" class, has a particularly grand ceremony. We had about 4 8th graders who took most of the academic honors, 3 girls and 1 boy. As the young man continually made his way across the stage to receive plaques and trophies, I could not help but to think of the day that his mother came to enroll him. She came in the gym door where we were letting the children in one morning, and she had her 2 sons and little daughter with her. She had tears in her eyes. I was standing with the principal and she came up with her family. She looked at my principal and said- "Would you take my children in your school? We are homeless and living in our car. They are smart children and will not cause you any problems." Of course we took the 2 oldest, who were 6th and 7th graders. The mother might not have known, but a school has to accept homeless children without address checks or proof of residence. The mother stated that she just wanted her children to have a chance at a good school. The family has since secured housing and the mother, who is obviously not a deadbeat but someone who fell on hard times, has a job. The boys have done well- both are in the gifted program and the 8th grader truly made his mom proud this week. He motivated me to do better by his example of overcoming hardship to excel.
The third moment came on Friday, which was my last day of school. Several of the teachers were in the library, which at my school is the place to be. The teacher's lounge is seldom used as most of my teachers spend their breaks in the media center working on plans, visiting, etc. One of my co-workers, a guy that I have worked with for about 15 years, had his 2 children with him. He has a son who is going into 6th grade and a daughter going into 2nd grade. This year has been tough on him as his wife left him. They gave the appearance of being a perfect family. They spent a lot of time together, they traveled, spent time with the kids at sports, etc. He was blindsided when she told him she was leaving, but that is a long story. She has primary custody of the kids, and he has them for his designated times and some of her time as she is apparently out partying. He would take them full-time, but the courts, well that is a story for another time, although I think they tend to side with mothers, even if they are sorry! Anyway, the little girl was sitting in one of my desk chairs and we were loading the laminating machine. We were laughing and having a good time when we heard this pitiful little voice say-
"Daddy, do you miss me?" Then the tears started to flow. My co-worker grabbed her up and hugged her and told her that he missed her every day, but that today they were going to have a lot of fun together. She had her little arms wrapped so tight around his neck, the message being don't let me go!" I was so touched and at the same time so mad at her mother for being so selfish- for wanting to "find myself" (that is her quote, not mine). Of course "finding myself" has included the partying and new boyfriends. Her little sweet voice and those tears have tugged at my heartstrings all weekend. We are living in a nation of little girls and boys who have selfish parents. We need to pray that this generation can overcome their upbringing!
This past week, of course, was the end of the school year. As with most schools, we have honors and awards day. Our 8th grade class, which is our "senior" class, has a particularly grand ceremony. We had about 4 8th graders who took most of the academic honors, 3 girls and 1 boy. As the young man continually made his way across the stage to receive plaques and trophies, I could not help but to think of the day that his mother came to enroll him. She came in the gym door where we were letting the children in one morning, and she had her 2 sons and little daughter with her. She had tears in her eyes. I was standing with the principal and she came up with her family. She looked at my principal and said- "Would you take my children in your school? We are homeless and living in our car. They are smart children and will not cause you any problems." Of course we took the 2 oldest, who were 6th and 7th graders. The mother might not have known, but a school has to accept homeless children without address checks or proof of residence. The mother stated that she just wanted her children to have a chance at a good school. The family has since secured housing and the mother, who is obviously not a deadbeat but someone who fell on hard times, has a job. The boys have done well- both are in the gifted program and the 8th grader truly made his mom proud this week. He motivated me to do better by his example of overcoming hardship to excel.
The third moment came on Friday, which was my last day of school. Several of the teachers were in the library, which at my school is the place to be. The teacher's lounge is seldom used as most of my teachers spend their breaks in the media center working on plans, visiting, etc. One of my co-workers, a guy that I have worked with for about 15 years, had his 2 children with him. He has a son who is going into 6th grade and a daughter going into 2nd grade. This year has been tough on him as his wife left him. They gave the appearance of being a perfect family. They spent a lot of time together, they traveled, spent time with the kids at sports, etc. He was blindsided when she told him she was leaving, but that is a long story. She has primary custody of the kids, and he has them for his designated times and some of her time as she is apparently out partying. He would take them full-time, but the courts, well that is a story for another time, although I think they tend to side with mothers, even if they are sorry! Anyway, the little girl was sitting in one of my desk chairs and we were loading the laminating machine. We were laughing and having a good time when we heard this pitiful little voice say-
"Daddy, do you miss me?" Then the tears started to flow. My co-worker grabbed her up and hugged her and told her that he missed her every day, but that today they were going to have a lot of fun together. She had her little arms wrapped so tight around his neck, the message being don't let me go!" I was so touched and at the same time so mad at her mother for being so selfish- for wanting to "find myself" (that is her quote, not mine). Of course "finding myself" has included the partying and new boyfriends. Her little sweet voice and those tears have tugged at my heartstrings all weekend. We are living in a nation of little girls and boys who have selfish parents. We need to pray that this generation can overcome their upbringing!
On another note, I hit the Publix today and I DONE GOOD! I spent 31.45 for all that you see above- saved $98.44!!! Even the cashier was impressed. It is really hard on a picture to see what all I got, but I had 4 bags of dog food (I made money on these), 2 cartons of Blue Bell, Crystal Light, Electrasol, Spray-n-Wash, etc. I had to buy hotdog buns for VBS tonight, and they were out of their brand so I bought the next cheapest which to me was not cheap- $4.00 for 2 packs. If you took that from my 31.45 I would have only spent less than 28.00! The only thing I did not have coupons for were my steam fresh veggies- which were on for 1/2 price. I had some coupons on them, but they expired yesterday. We really love those- they are quick, simple to fix and taste great. I left Publix on a high- if that makes sense.
