handwritten on October 11, 2019
I'm not sure what it is, but every time I'm sick I crave two items specifically: ginger ale and macaroni and cheese. And so tonight with a stiff neck and a headache the size of Texas, my husband with his good heart looked up the places with the best looking macaroni and cheese and we ventured out for a little fresh air and some good company. A strange combination, but sometimes the weirdest combinations are the ones that make our hearts sing when we aren't at our best.
In the midst of the meal I had to laugh because my husband at one particular restaurant always insists on sharing the side of the table with me instead of going to the opposite side. It began one evening when it was too...
handwritten on October 10, 2019
In the heat of my first year of teaching I remember excitement and passion and long hours of work all caught up to me one day within the classroom. It was a Friday I believe and at around 1:00 I was shivering, my face was on fire and I could hardly swallow. Just my first of many bouts of Strep that year-it seemed to be that symbol of "Stop. Rest. Slow Down." Because sometimes some of us need a real example to just stay put on a couch during the weekend and not move until the next week begins.
Flash forward five years (it has been a while) and Thursday, the night of open house is just around the corner. I'm putting up all the decorations, we are completing last minute projects and all of a...
handwritten on October 8, 2019
Over my last few years of teaching, if there is anything I have learned about humans and life, love and trust is that the magic sticks. If you are studying for a test or trying to complete something and you find yourself unable to do so...ask yourself this question: "Are you trying to stick magic?" Because what has magic and purpose and passion automatically sticks to the brain. This is why we can remember some of the most detailed moments of our lives that happened years and years ago. Like I can still distinctly remember going to Chincoteague and playing with all of my cousins and my uncle rolling so many ice cream cones in sprinkles for us during the evenings. And it could be that I only...
handwritten on October 7, 2019
I had this idea for Poetry Club this year that we would do our best to Spread the Word of Poetry and love and beautiful words. And I think the lesson that needs to be taught more and more today is the fact that the simple act of giving is one of the most wonderful acts.
With 11 great pumpkins rumbling in my car on the way to work, my mind went back to the scene where Linus is waiting for the Great Pumpkin shivering all by himself. You wonder if those individuals who never recieve gifts or are given compliments that are few and far between if they feel a bit like Linus-lonely, hopeless and cold. And yet you have to respect Linus because he gives up his Tricks-or-Treats and his candy apples...
handwritten on October 5, 2019
Today I decided to take a leap of faith and run pretty extensively across the 31st street bridge and down the trail leading to the Pittsburgh Pirate's Stadium. Ultimately, I landed in the northside right in front of my brother's apartment. It was the most picturesque late morning with blue skies and no clouds. the air felt crisp and smelled clean as I trodded along the paths-leaves just starting to change a bit of colors-many blowing past me. I ran without pain but into the world of autumn which if I'm being honest-is my absolute favorite season but the one that runs by so quickly sometimes you have a hard time catching it. And for once instead of thinking about school or my students or my...
