Keeping the Kleenex Close

After hearing this story on NPR on Sunday, I can't get the song out of my head.


Oooh child.
Things are gonna get easier.
Oooh child.
Things'll get brighter.
Ooh child

Things are gonna get easier.
Oooh child.
Things'll get brighter.
Ooh child

Someday we'll get it together and we'll get it undone
Someday when the world is much brighter
Someday we'll walk in the rays of a beautiful sun
Someday when the world is much lighter

I'm feeling so lost these past few days.
The box of Kleenex is never too far from my reach. I wish it didn't have to be.

Places are opening up and yet I'm not sure I am ready to go anywhere.
Every hour the news changes.  For the worse.

Four book birthday parties this week. A National Doughnut Day raffle happening now with doughnut deliveries by me on Friday to the winners.  Is it frivilous?  Maybe? But it makes my students smile and we could all use that right now. I know when I see them on meets I grin from ear to ear.

Every Monday morning I begin with a read aloud in Mrs. Kosinski's first grade class.  This week I chose, Smriti Halls's I'm Sticking with You (illustrated by Steve Small). Love it. Bear and Squirrel are friends and do everything together until Squirrel wants a little space. Somehow it hit a nerve. I read it before the class and cried. I thought I got the tears all out.  Nah. Maybe the kids didn't notice the frog that showed up. Tari, like Squirrel, is ready for a little more room.  But unlike Squirrel, she won't be coming back. Breathe, I tell myself..."Who shares their very last chocolate with me?...We fit together like bugs in a rug. Like jam in a doughnut..." I'm going to miss her so much. Good thing the tissues are huddled just under my elbow.



On another note, check out this free download from Smriti. It's a beautiful picture book with a message we could all use right now. "Dark days may shake us. Worries creep in. With dragons to duel. And battles to win."

However you can, fight the battle. Protest. Read. Donate. Write. Talk. Paint. Listen. Express Yourself. Vote. Love. We're in this together. Things are gonna get easier. Things'll get brighter.

In the meantime, keep your Kleenex close.