Foreign Roses

I received a few gifts from some of the kids in kindergarten on those last couple of days.  The look on their faces is "gift" in itself...as they bring their gift to me with the biggest smile on their face.  I like to let them open it for me....because really that's what they want to do. 


One thing I received was a small hanging basket with a pink rose bush in it.  A tee tiny rose bush.  Would that be a bush?  Or a plant? 


The boy that gave it to me was so proud of it, and kept explaining it to me.

Him:  It's roses.

Me:  I see that!  They're so pretty.

Him:  They're pink.

Me:  I love them!

Him:  They're foreign.

Me:  Foreign?

Him:  Uh....I mean fornen.

Me:  Fornen?

Him:  Forny.

Me:  Forny?

Him:  Yeah....see?  (As he points to the thorns.)

Me:  Yes, they are!  I better be careful.

It was all I could do not to squeeze him tight.  So proud of that little plant.  That foreign little plant.  So fornen.  Yet so forny.


And speaking of pretty plants....I received a basket of flowers from one of the moms at our school on the last day.

This mom gives a lot of her time to our school and there seems to be no end to her energy or generosity.  This mom takes all of our lost and found jackets and coats home and washes and dries them and brings them back to school on hangers to hang on a special hanging cart that her carpenter husband made. 

Do you know why she does this?

Because she knows the kids won't look through a pile of jackets but maybe they will find their lost items if they're hanging.  How thoughtful is that?  I don't even begin to think like that.  But she does.


She is a blessing to that school and one little regret I have about leaving is that her second son is coming to kindergarten next year.  I know he will do great, but I sure would have liked to get to know him...as I have watched him grow the last 4 years as he tagged along up to the school with his mama.

She will never fully know how much that gesture of finding me in the hall on that last day to give me a basket of fresh flowers made me feel.  Thanks Tori!

35th Reunion

To all of you young people out there....35 years fly by fast.  Hold on tight.

I graduated in 1976.  Back then it was modern.  Now it's vintage.

My father took a job with the EPA the summer before my 9th grade year.  While he worked in Mississippi, my mother stayed behind with us in Bryan to sell the house and give us one more semester with our friends. It was a bittersweet time because I knew that I was moving away during the Christmas break. 

I call Bryan, Texas, my hometown.  I have no family there, but it is the town I grew up in.  It's where my childhood was spent.  So while I actually graduated from Bay Senior Highschool in Bay St. Louis, Mississippi, my parents moved to Houston,Texas,  my senior year and I moved the day after I graduated. I'm setting the flag down in Bryan and calling it home.

The girls of my childhood have been very gracious in including me in their reunions and weddings and gatherings.  One girl in particular, Stephanie, pretty much threw this whole thing together via the internet and facebook because she lives in Maryland. ( She's the childhood friend that I met at Silver Bella.....and the one that signed me up for 8 swaps because she kept clicking the button and it didn't seem to be "taking it".....so she would click on another swap....and then another....and another. ha.  And it was taking them all.)  She did a fabulous job of planning this and getting the word out. 


Stephanie has a blog and it was this blog that started me blogging.  What a great world she introduced me to.  Come to think of it....this might have been about the time I stopped cooking. wink wink 

Thank you, thank you, thank you Stephanie George.....

you pulled together a wonderful event.

The reunion was held in downtown Bryan at The Village Cafe....in and around the place....up and down the street and next door at the opening between 2 old buildings where The Sweetbriar Band played.  It was hot and humid and fun.  While it was a reunion for the Class of '76, it was held in a public place and open to everyone. Lots of people showed up from other classes. 

I took a lot of very, very bad pictures.  At one point the camera had been turned to "delayed picture".....so I have a lot of sidewalks and blurred people.  I take pictures like I live....full force ahead without much thought.

For at least 2 hours, there was an attempt to gather all of the '76 ers for a group shot.  So at least 2 hours later, here is the attempt to corral the cats.

I'm on the back row...and thankful I wasn't squatting on the front row for 10 minutes. 

 You go girls in the front row!

Rhonda Rice....we ruled in 5th grade.

And doesn't that look like Jack Black on the keyboards?

There's the event planner, Stephanie next to Chuck. 

 Listening and dancing to ZZ Top, The Doobie Brothers, The Eagles
.....ahh...music of the 70's.

Sherry, Cathy and me.

Betty, me, Becky, Pat, Cathy and Sherry. 

Cathy, Lindsey, Lisa and Cindy.

Doesn't Lindsey look great for being 53?

She's not...she's Cathy's cute daughter. 

The Sweetbriar Band. 

I love the set up between two very old buildings.  A perfect outdoor venue.

Greg Phelps...at the mike, found my camera and returned it to me the next morning. 

I realized I had lost it and was sick about it.  I posted on fb and within minutes, I was put in touch with Greg to pick it up. 

I kept saying I didn't care about the camera but
there were some great pictures on that memory chip. 

ha.

And more poses.

And more candid shots.

That's Stephanie on the left.

Pat and Cathy....the best.

We love them.

Best sidewalk shot of the night.

We did a little club hopping then ate breakfast at IHOP and then talked until almost 5:00 a.m.

It has taken me 2 days to catch up on that sleep.

I love those people. 

By the way, downtown Bryan is a great place.  They have done a wonderful job with revamping it and the restaurants, clubs and stores are all so cute.  We stayed at The LaSalle Hotel...a wonderful "new" old hotel.  We plan on going back just to revisit more of the place and stay there again.

Goodbye School, Hello Summer

School's out for summer.

I'm out for good.

Or for sad.

Or for a new chapter. 

I am always very melancholy the last few days of the school year so this sadness is right on schedule.  We spend a lot of time with the kids...bonding and teaching and loving them.  And then they're gone.  Like little puppies that are ready to be weaned from their mama....those kindergartners are ready for first grade.  

And my co-workers...like combat soldiers in the trenches together...we have a connection.  This kindergarten team is my team.  They are my people.  My tribe. My troop.

And so the sadness I am feeling is just "end of school" sadness.  Topped with some "I'm not part of that team anymore because I resigned" sadness.


Just so you know, I'm really okay.  I am.  I know good things are in store for me...because while I may be a daily pessimist (or realist, as I refer to myself), I'm a lifetime optimist. Things always work out.



I am one to claim "happy" and name it when it happens...so I must claim "sad" and name it when it happens.  I am not a cryer.  And right about now I could use a really good, ugly crying spell.  I need the release.

I took a few pictures the last couple of days of the things I love about kindergarten that I will miss the most.  I wish I could capture the noise that comes with these photographs. Because it's the noise I love.

Goodbye snaggle toothed grins.

(I had to fight the impulse to pull many of those.)

Goodbye creative messes and coloring outside of the lines.

Goodbye little eyeglasses and Sponge Bob glasses cases. 

Goodbye sassy sandals and polished toes.

Goodbye little boys who write on furniture with crayons....and sign their name.

Goodbye perpetually untied shoes.

Goodbye sweet little girl who minds so well.

Goodbye little flip-flops that have been played in so hard...

and that last little bit of toenail polish hanging on for dear life.

Goodbye sparkly shoes.

Goodbye checkered shoes.

Goodbye fashion statements.

Goodbye princess accessories.

It's been a great ride.

*****

My team treated me to a fajita dinner at one of their homes. I received lots of "beach themed" gifts and cards full of kind words.  We had fun...as we always do. I appreciate it so much because I know how hard it was to coordinate that gathering and purchase the gifts and food at this hectic time of year.  Just that they gave up their evening to be there is appreciated. 

Love in action.

And I will have the cutest beach towels, beach hats, beach bags, plastic wine glasses

 and magazines in Destin this summer.

One teacher apologized for not going with the beach theme...but instead gave me a cross for my wall. She typed a long letter to me about why she gave me the cross...

Part of her letter quoted...

The girls may be upset with me because my gift does not really fit the theme they were working toward.  When I thought of a gift for you I could not help but think of the words you said so often because they hold so much meaning to me.

"This is our ministry, you would say."

"They are only five.  They have only been on this earth for five years."

(my words quoted by her)

*****

Let that be what I left behind.

Don't ever forget...they are only five.

And you have been given this ministry because He knew you could do it well.