Tag Archives: children

Apr14

sometimes i lie awake at night, and i ask, ‘where have i gone wrong?’ then a voice says to me, ‘this is going to take more than one night. – charles schultz

Posted on April 14, 2015 by beth

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once again

it seemed

like a good idea

at the time.

–

i was seven years old

when my

very cute

neighbor/paper boy

told on me

for riding my bike

where i wasn’t

allowed to be riding

i got caught lying

by my mother

who asked me about it

i never was

a good actress

and there were

consequences

so together

with one of my sisters

and our good friend

we planned

our sweet revenge

in a style

only young children

could create.

–

we would collect

a huge pile of burrs

from the field

behind our houses

hide it in our summer tent

wait for the boys to show up

and

throw it at him

so he’d see who he messed with.

–

but

it took so long

it was such a hot summer day

it was so boring in there

and

i fell asleep in the tent

but somehow curled up

right on our

prickly pile of revenge

and

i woke up

with my hair

horribly embedded

with the all the burrs

so i

burst out crying

walked inside

asking nana

to help me

brush them out

i lost lots of hair

it hurt

it took

what seemed like hours

and

when it was over

my hair resembled

a giant ball of split end fuzz

so i

i went out on the front porch

to relax and eat a popsicle

and saw jd

delivering our paper

and

his hair looked darn good.

–

Apr12

big doors swing on little hinges. – w. clement stone

Posted on April 12, 2015 by beth

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mama hangs on tight

as she

takes her

baby chicks

off to

master

their moves

their kicks

their spins

their control

as they

jump and skip

through the city

over and under

everything

in their way

and

they can’t wait

unleash their power

so much energy

harnessed here

—

the speed of the boss is the speed of the team.
– lee iacocca

Apr8

leave no stone unturned. – euripides

Posted on April 8, 2015 by beth

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he spent all of his recess

digging in the

hard muddy ground

with a

broken plastic shovel

and a little team

of even littler friends

and at long last

all of this hard work

paid off

and he

presented this

very special

treasure

a rock

in all

its

muddy glory.

—

geologists have a saying – rocks remember.
– neil armstrong

Apr3

happy international children’s book day.

Posted on April 3, 2015 by beth

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MATILDA WORMWOOD

from roald dahl’s ‘matilda’. not that matilda is only interested in children’s books – before she even gets to school, she’s onto adult classics such as ernest hemingway’s ‘the old man and the sea’ and ‘nicholas nickleby’ by charles dickens. an avid reader who manages to outsmart the horrible miss trunchbull? well, of course we love matilda.

‘I’ve always said to myself that if

a little pocket calculator

can do it why shouldn’t I?’

– matilda wormwood

—

credits: roald dahl

Apr1

poetry is when an emotion has found its thought and the thought has found words. – robert frost

Posted on April 1, 2015 by beth

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when a kinder

in my class

asked me

to show her

how to spell

these words

it was

because

she was

writing

birthday card

for her

mother

and

there

could be

no finer gift

than

this

beautiful

poem of love

she created.

Mar22

never worry about numbers. help one person at a time, and always start with the person nearest you. ~mother teresa   

Posted on March 22, 2015 by beth

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i went for a visit

on a day off from teaching

to teach

in my youngest daughter’s class

where she is a first year teacher

and

on my way

i was overwhelmed

when

i thought about

her class

so young

and

so many of them

who

live

amid

poverty

and

violence

and

hunger

and

chaos

and

i wanted to

stop

and

buy them

everything

for many

have nothing

but

when i got there

we shared

a meeting

a holiday lesson

paint and glitter

stickers

books

and

hugs

and

as i

sat on the floor

with them

and read stories

and told them

about the holiday

and sang songs

and played games

and helped them

one on one

and watched

the stronger ones

help the others

who were struggling

it was clear

that no matter

their circumstances

first and foremost

they were still children

who needed attention

and love

and support

and

with kind hearts

who happen to be

tough situations

through no fault

of their own

and

some will sink

and

some will swim

and

rise above

and

my daughter

is someone

who is helping to

make that difference

for them

just by caring

and trying

and

giving her all

and then some

even in this

very challenging environment

and one said,

‘i never had a rainbow sticker before. i really love it so much.’

and

it was so small

but meant a lot to him

and they sat near me and braided my hair

and felt it

because it was different

and asked me questions

about their teacher

my daughter

‘does she have any sisters?’

‘you her mama?’

‘can you bring in your grandkids?’

and i realized

what a hero

my daughter is

each and every day

and

i was

overwhelmed

all over again

and

i could not

be prouder.

—-

ON HEROES WITHOUT CAPES

“when I was very young, most of my childhood heroes wore capes, flew through the air, or picked up buildings with one arm. they were spectacular and got a lot of attention.but as I grew, my heroes changed, so that now I can honestly say that anyone who does anything to help a child is a hero to me.”

– mr. rogers