one friend shares her flower with another
—
as a teacher of young children
i am always struck
by the natural way
that children connect with each other
reaching out
with genuine kindness and kinship.
—
“anyone who takes time to be kind is beautiful.”
-author unknown
oh, we all have those days
you start out by not having your water bottle
so you get a special halloween cup of water
it gets tipped over when you are cutting
you go to get a paper towel to dry it up
but you come back with what you can find
toilet paper
that gets wet and mushy
the extra part rolls out on the floor
your coat falls off of the back of your chair
the paper you were cutting gets soaked and chopped into little pieces
because you are really good at cutting
you can’t find the cap to your marker
because it rolled off your table
now it might dry up
all you have left are the dark color crayons
you don’t get time to finish your cheez-its
because you are trying to clean up
the ones that are left get wet and are mushy
you go out to recess and run and run and go on a pirate adventure
your teachers love you anyway and tell you it happens to them too
and it’s all okay.
—
“there’s no limit to how complicated things can get,
on account of one thing always leading to another.”
-E. B. White
a very special delivery
going to a very special place:
the fairy house in our school garden.
they will be so happy.
“find happiness by delivering it”
– chris murray
day two of our return to school
we all find comfort in our own way
a donkey, a pillow, a bus, a dragon
each makes all the difference to someone.
—
“cure sometimes, treat often, comfort always.”
-hippocrates
the kinder came
they masked
they played
they conquered.
—
“this is the short and long of it.”
– william shakespeare
—
first day of school – september 2020
today is the first day back at school
i imagine the kinder calmly gliding into nature with me
all possibilities are on the table
could be more like the picture below
most likely will fall somewhere in between.
“today is a most unusual day, because we have never lived it before; we will never live it again; it is the only day we have.”
-william arthur ward
—
photo credits: vintage pinterest, gamma-keystone london
“the six pack’- my grandies all kind of sitting still in one place at one time
—
on national grandparents day
i am reminded of this afternoon
5 years ago in the park
you always were
from the youngest age
each your very own person
i’m so happy to be ‘peaches’ to every one of you.
—
“when a child is born, so are grandmothers.”
judith levy
what did i find at the farmer’s market?
lots and lots of berries, zucchini, tomatoes, farmers, pies, flowers, herbs, honey, bread,
and one tiny dragon.
—
“one does not need the size of a dragon to have the soul of a dragon. “
– robin hobb
grandie j heads out
mohawk helmet on
backpack filled
with pokemon cards, water, hope
off on his bike to meet friends
at their ‘secret fort’
in the neighborhood.
after he makes his grand exit
grandie b, left behind, shares –
“we all have the same secret fort, but no one knows it.”
—
“well i know the secret places. and the nests in hedge and tree;
at what doors are friendly faces, in what hearts are thoughts of me.”
-henry wadsworth longfellow
doing virtual early childhood parent-teacher conferences online
did not feel natural
but i give parents so much credit
some went to elaborate lengths
to find a space and time
where their child wouldn’t find them
so we could openly talk
and share stories
about how their child
touched our hearts this year
we talked to parents
in a closet, in a basement, up in an attic room,
and those who sent their child off on an errand
some waited until their child was asleep at night
but one thing was the same
this was a wonderful group of supportive, think-on-their-feet parents
who kept our connection with their children going
even from a distance
as we all navigated our way through this uncharted territory
and we were so lucky to have them as our teaching and learning partners this year.
—
“in a world where the great technologies enable us to record, replay, cut and paste, zoom in, and delete –
listening is the crucial commitment to keep the heart touchable.”
-mark nepo
—
photo credit: bored panda
I didn't have my glasses on.... 