Spelling Tests and 4th Grade Hecklers

Whenever I give spelling tests I try to add a wee-bit of humor to the day. Sometimes I’ll have students think of and blurt out different nouns, and then I choose one and use it in the sentences that I say with each word. Other times I’ll pick one student and have that student doing strange things in each sentence. And still other times I just say whatever wacky thing happens to pop into my head.

Today I went with my off-the-cuff, whatever pops into my head routine…and baby I was hot! I had ‘em in the palm of my hand. And let me tell you, it’s not quite as easy as you might think to keep a room full of nine and ten year olds in stitches. Well, maybe it is, but never the less, I was on fire.

I looked down and “gown” was the next word. Of course the first thing I think of is wedding gown. Before I knew what I was saying this sentence popped out of my mouth.

“At my wedding, the gown looked great on me!”

And everyone laughed.

However, just as the laughing was beginning to die down, a tiny voice from the corner of the room squeaked out these words,
“Mr. A, are you trying to tell us something?”

And the room completely fell apart.

Just when you’re thinking about taking your act on the road, you get taken down by an unruly 4th grade heckler.

Sometimes teaching can be brutal.

An Unusual Sight...at Least for Me

unusual
adjective
1. not usual or common or ordinary;
2. being definitely out of the ordinary and unexpected;
3. not commonly encountered;

While I think all three of these definitions would make sense in the context of my situation yesterday, really the third definition is the one that makes the most sense…at least for me.

You see, yesterday my daughter brought home here first jr. high report card and she got all A’s. She even had a 100 average in not one, but two of her seven classes.

I think I’ve mentioned things before about my lack of success as a student, at least through my high school days. I mean I never saw all A’s until I was in graduate school. And I’m sorry if this ruffles your feathers, but getting a 4.0 in seminary just ain’t all that hard!

So my head is still spinning as I try to wrap my mind around this crazy new world.

Because all A's on a report card really is an unusual sight...at least for me.

Life on a Cloud

Feeling safe and secure in my own little space,
Yes, safe and secure, cause there’s never a trace

Of any real danger or sadness or hurt,
I always have dinner and usually dessert

The world that I know is not a cruel place,
When I go to sleep, there’s a smile on my face

I have a wonderful family, supports always there,
I’m surrounded with love, compassion and care

Yet I know that not everyone lives like I do,
That our world, it has pain and suffering too

It’s just far too easy to look past the pain,
To live in my world and try to stay sane

I exist on a cloud with the pain far below,
If I squint I can see it, or at least I think so

Sometimes from way down, I can hear a faint hum,
So I toss down some pennies, a quarter…a crumb

Then I fluff up my cloud and think, “Man, I’m sure nice!”
Of the folks down below I don’t even think twice

But my cloud took a dip, and I came face to face,
With a world and an image my mind can’t erase

What I saw was a world where children have fear,
Where they’re yelled at and beaten, but just why was not clear

I looked deep in a face, whose gaze came back hollow,
The despair that I saw was a hard pill to swallow

With my cloud way up high, my life was so easy
But now I’m uncertain, and I feel a bit queasy

Now my cloud’s not so fluffy, and a little less white
The temptation to clean it, I hope I can fight

I’m still trying to figure out what I should do,
Cause if clouds can float down, I’m sure help can too.