A Story to Show What They're Like

We were doing an activity to help the students find possible topics for their personal narratives. Randomly generated questions appeared on the screen, and the kids were supposed to answer them in their small groups. What stories show what my family and I are like? popped up. I looked at the three boys at my table.

"My family likes guns!" said one of them right away, misreading the question. "We love hunting!"

The other boys were wide-eyed.

"What's a story from a time you and your family were hunting?" I asked, trying to refocus him.

"Wait!" one of the other boys said. "Have you really shot a gun?"

"Yes!" the first guy said. "It is really awesome!"

"What about a story, though?" I pressed. "Like a memorable time you were shooting or hunting?"

"My family hates guns!" said the second kid. "We like playing charades, though. Except we always pick the same thing and then it's no fun."

"My family doesn't like guns either," said the third boy. "My parents talk really loud on the phone, though!"

The next question popped up, What was a time you were embarrassed? and off they went on another tangent.

Usy-Bay and Ired-Tay

I was busy all day at school yesterday, from 7:20 to 5:30 with only a 15 minute break for lunch. I dreamed all night last night about the classes and meetings I had just lived through, as well as the classes and meetings I would have today. I woke this morning weary and feeling unready for the day.

BUT, the work I did yesterday paid off a little today, and although I was still busy all day, when 4:15 rolled around and Heidi was ready to go home, I was surprised to find that I was ready, too.

(Then I ran errands and went to the garden and picked a bunch of soggy produce and gotten eaten by mosquitoes. That's a different blog post, though, and now I won't dream about those things tonight.)

That Could've Gone Better

"So before we go on," I said to my homeroom this morning, "why don't you tell me something you already know about IB?"

Crickets.

Finally one boy's hand flailed into the air, so I called on him.

"I was just stretching," he told me.

"Well, what do you know about IB?" I asked again.

"It has an 'I' and a 'B' in it," he answered.

"What does the I and B stand for?" I probed.

"No one knows," he responded crossly.

"Some people know," I said.

"Correction:" he replied, "no one cares."

Chronometry

We had a lovely dinner last night at my brother's house. "Can you believe we've lived here almost thirty years?" he asked at one point in the conversation.

This morning we all gathered at a favorite brunch spot. "Can you believe we've been coming here almost 30 years?" it was me who asked this time.

Later in the afternoon, I drove my mom out to my aunt's house, where she's lived for the last 58 years. There was no need to ask the question.

Such permanence in our lives anchors us. It allows us to rock gently off to sleep while all around us every drop of water is rushing past on its way to somewhere else. The ocean changes and stays the same.

Can you believe that?

Six Word Movie Reviews

Over the years we’ve enjoyed several installments of the six word memoir post. Today I’ve come up with a similar challenge that combines the six word limitation with my love of the movies.

Here’s my first six word review:

At least no bunnies got boiled.

Think you know the film? Have a six word review of your own? Go ahead and reply!

Friday at Last

The morning after Back-to-school Night everyone’s dragging. A colleague stopped by my room before the bell to ask a question, pausing as he entered. “Wow! You look as tired as everyone feels!” he said.

I raised my eyebrows and let it go. It wasn’t the most sensitive remark, but I knew that he was tired, too.

Hopefully we’ll all get some rest this weekend. 

Just Hit Play

Because of the parking shortage at our school while they build another school in the, where else?, parking lot, last year and this year our administration asked us to make videos for the parents who might not be able to make it. What could we do, but comply?

And once they were all done, almost everyone had the same question: What do you need me for?