Options? Hope!

Be a slicer. 

Join in at Two Writing Teacher with Stacey, Ruth and many others who are inspired by each others stories. 

I sit here wordless with so much to say. I want to tell you about all their challenges. I want to tell you about my fears. How will I do this...how will I? Needs that go beyond my bounds of knowledge. Needs that I am tackling one at a time. Files thick with accommodations and gaps for me to fill. Feeling strapped for energy and changing plans moment by moment. Playing instruments for 20 minutes instead of reading because that's what one student wanted to do, so we did it with her, she was a part of us for a moment. Interpreting hand gestures from another who is determined to speak. Cradling the tired one, hugging the criers and singing all day because the indescribable ones don't look at me otherwise. Intervening before the hitting. Showing tolerance toward anger. Smiling. Cheering for the triumphs even when they seem small. Moving past the failures. Encouraging pride. And telling myself over and over again that each day is better and my only option is hope, there is no alternative.

A Brave New Year

 Today came and I conquered.

Which basically means:
I survived.
I got everyone home.

I am still awake and it is after 8:00 p.m.
I am asking, "How will I do this?"
I am answering, "Any way possible."

Onward to tomorrow.

A Chapter

A slug,
a troll,
is what I've been.

A bit slow,
a bit small,
invisible I've been.

Not slimy
not hairy
but, I've been.

A bit sorry,
a bit pity,
a bit sad I've been.



So, I've been away from the blogosphere a bit. Not how I would have pictured my August to be. I had big plans to write everyday. Then, on a sunny August day, on my way outside to ask my husband a question snap, bam, boom, I broke my foot.
People...I teach kindergarten!
I looked at my husband after the realization and all he could say is, "I know."
I was in disbelief. It has changed everything about how I would normally prepare. It has changed my priorities. It has forced me to look at things differently. It is a small thing, really it is...but it has changed me. I can still do a lot of things and there are a lot of things I cannot do. It makes many things take twice as long, and again, there are some things I just can't do, so I save time! I can't go to my writing spot in my house, this changes me and my routines. I have had to give in and give up on some things, but it is really just a bump. A short chapter in the many of my life. I have always said, I hope to make my life a great read, everyone should.

Sometimes, I just wish I was the one writing it!
 

Lines Through the Day

 Visits the poets of Poetry Friday and share in their lines at Violet Nesdoly/Poem.

Today has come and gone. A busy day, a day full of words and lines but unconnected in meaning. I have been working on words that connect in my notebook and they are, well, not ready. So...I come with lines, seeds of poems to come, maybe.


Moments of my day...


1.
tree across the road
shall we move it?
sure
exhilarating, as I hurl a limb
my part, I feel
my daughter's words, "way to go mommy and daddy,"
as we clear the road of worry.


2.
the first glance
at the year
the room, still and alone
ready to be molded
filled with its purpose
a home


3.
deer in the dark
I see you
as you cross shadows
disappearing into night


And, someday my driftwood poem will be here, some Friday it will be ready. Never have I felt so guarded about my words. But, I think it's okay to think harder about some and let some others go.

Find a Penny...

I have been working on curriculum since I got up this morning. I enjoy the finished product and even the process can be fun at times. It can be so frustrating though, the time it takes to do small things makes my eyes cross. Then, as I was leaving my school today, I came across a penny. It was on the ground and I walked past it. Then I decided to go back and pick it up. Into my pocket it went. Maybe I will feel like I have accomplished more when tomorrow rolls around! Until then, back to work.

A Spider, Cicada and Water Play

I have an affinity for insect, bugs, arachnids...I can't help it...I like them. Maybe I should have been an entomologist. I find them absolutely fascinating and although I don't like being bitten or stung, I like to watch them. Several day ago I noticed that a spider had taken up residence on our window ledge in the bathroom. The spider was hiding behind a bit of decoration which it appeared was an anchor for the web. I watched the sweeping web a while. I decided to leave it alone and visit each day. If nothing else the web was great for gathering dust that would otherwise be landing on the window sill and I felt a little bit like I was rooting for the spider. A few days later it came time to clean the bathroom...hmm, what was I to do? I caught my little friend and sent her on some hydrangeas which I thought would be excellent web real estate and got to cleaning. I hadn't ever felt a web (on purpose) with my hand before. I had gotten plenty in the face, which is not as desirable, but I was curious. Here is my photo of my web exploration.

Then today my kids came running in, "mom, mom there's a cicada outside and it just came out of its skin, come look!"
I grabbed my camera and went out to see the cicada and was it ever a sight. We watched it for a while. He seemed a little bashful after I was finished photographing him as he went under the larger strands of grass and hid.

I know they are pests, destroy crops, create a mess, but they have a purpose too. If nothing else to fascinate people like me who are so entertained by six legs, huge eyes and veiny wings.



I had to share a couple pics of my kids on our last trip of the summer. That toe dipping starts out so innocent and then suddenly you are swimming fully clothed. For the whole story, you can read the end of a previous post here.

Under the Stars

Last night I was under a northern Michigan sky. A clear sky that reflected its constellations on the still black water of the lake. I stood there looking, neck stiffening from the strain of trying to see it all at one time. I saw many formations of stars, some that I recognized and some that I did not. I did see the most popular though, the big dipper. It is always interesting to me how excited I get when I see it, I have to verbalize it out loud every time, "look, it's the big dipper," in my excited whisper. When it is that late and that peaceful you can't help but have a hush in your voice.
Tonight we are home, southern Michigan. It is late and we went outside for a moment to look up at the same sky. Sure enough, there it was again, the big dipper. There is comfort in knowing that the sky is the same sky, every night. Even when I can't see it, when it is covered in clouds, when it is filtered with light, it is all there, looking down at me.