Every year since I was 19, I’ve dreaded August 26th, as it’s the anniversary of my mom’s death. When my dad called to tell me she had died by suicide, I sank to the floor, unable to do anything but scream “tell me you are lying!” It was 1998 and I was just about ready […]
school
The Last Day of School
At the end of every school year, I have to create an individual report for every student in each of my classes. I write things like, “Jack has shown strong growth in historical writing this year, as shown by…” They are sometimes dry, though I try to show the parents of my students how much […]
The Talent Show
“Check your email again, Mom,” Claire begged. “I have to know if we made the talent show!” I did. And there was the email – her act had made it into the elementary school talent show. She jumped up and down with joy. “We’re doing ‘Happier’ by Marshmello and Bastille,” she said. “We’re going to […]
Lockdown
For many years, when we did lockdown drills at school, I always texted Shawn to tell him about it. Last week, I sat through my first drill without him.
Parent 2
My kids all came home after the first day of school with backpacks full of forms. “You have to fill everything out today!” Claire instructed. Even though I’m a teacher, I still can’t understand how schools make you fill out the same information a dozen times. Can’t they put all this stuff in a database […]