My wife teaches social skills for students with Autism Spectrum Disorder, and one of her kids, William, has warned her all year long that the telephone list on her wall was out of date. "That's going to be a problem, Skipper," he says, and the other day he was right. One of the students had a little meltdown requiring an administrator's support, but for some reason there was no answer in the main office when she called. Deciding to phone the assistant principal directly, she looked at her list and realized that neither he, nor his office were in the building last year, and so, William was right.
William's mom is a colleague of ours, and so we knew right away when her father-in-law passed away over the weekend. Extending my condolences to her, I asked how William was taking it since he was very close to his grandfather. "It's beginning to sink in," she told me, "but when we told him the news, the first thing he said was, We'll have to take him off our contact list."
We laughed at the pragmatism of such a reaction; it's that kind of quirkiness that makes even the most challenging middle schoolers so much fun.
Just a few minutes ago, I clicked over to my Facebook account and was presented with a memory from three years ago today, when we went out to celebrate our wedding with a friend from out of town. It was a lovely evening, a memory to treasure, made even more so by the fact that our friend passed away unexpectedly a few months later.
Apologies to William, but I'm glad he's still on my contact list.
William's mom is a colleague of ours, and so we knew right away when her father-in-law passed away over the weekend. Extending my condolences to her, I asked how William was taking it since he was very close to his grandfather. "It's beginning to sink in," she told me, "but when we told him the news, the first thing he said was, We'll have to take him off our contact list."
We laughed at the pragmatism of such a reaction; it's that kind of quirkiness that makes even the most challenging middle schoolers so much fun.
Just a few minutes ago, I clicked over to my Facebook account and was presented with a memory from three years ago today, when we went out to celebrate our wedding with a friend from out of town. It was a lovely evening, a memory to treasure, made even more so by the fact that our friend passed away unexpectedly a few months later.
Apologies to William, but I'm glad he's still on my contact list.
I like the twist on this story!
ReplyDeleteI like how you connected these anecdotes together. Good thing we have different kinds of contact lists and ways to keep in touch.
ReplyDelete"That's going to be a problem, Skipper." Now that's one smart kid. Excuse me while I go print the latest edition of my contact list, just in case.
ReplyDeleteYou've woven many stories together in this poignant piece. And the last line is perfect to wrap it up.
ReplyDeleteWhat a great slice! The way you wove together the details about the contact lists, the quirkiness of middle schoolers, and mortality made me want to re-read. And the dialogue. Perfect!
ReplyDelete