School Life in Full Swing

What a busy week!  One teacher quit this week to attend the university, and another of the English teachers was sick for four days.  Since our only "substitute" is also the school secretary, we all had to pull a little extra weight this week.  Hence, I'm tired.  :)

Notable notes and quotes:

• One little 2nd grader cried in the bathroom yesterday.  I asked her what was wrong, and she said she missed her grandparents.  "Where are they?" I asked.  "With God," she sobbed.  "I just want to be with them!"  How heartbreaking!
• A 5th grader had written a note to me in her notebook, which I noticed while walking around checking homework.  My high school experience put me instantly on alert as I read: "Miss Elizabeth, I have something very important to tell you.  I know I have told you before I have something important to tell you.  But I just want to say--" the big reveal? [big intake of breath] "I love you, Miss Elizabeth!"  Whew!
• Tattling, tattling.  "Angel's chewing gum!" "Dara is eating!" "Mimi's talking!" I've got to figure out a way to prevent this.  It's amazing how interested everyone is in everyone else's business.
• I broke a little 2nd graders' pencil sharpener.  Oops.  Don't worry, I replaced it.
• I told my 6th graders that I would be running late since I had to stay with the 2nd graders.  Would they please start their handwriting when they returned from devotions?  One of the boys responded, "Don't worry, my life [an expression of affection]."  Cheeky already.
• A 5th grader was extremely surprised that after biting off the end of a red pen, he had red ink running down his tongue and on his lips.  Of course it looked like blood.  As he ran to the bathroom, I couldn't help but laugh at the memory of his expression.  Mimi chided me, "Don't laugh, Miss Elizabeth."  Me?  "Sometimes," I said, "you just have to laugh when somebody does something stupid."
• "Miss Elizabeth, he writes so slow," the girls complained of our new 5th grade student.  "Well, how fast did you write when you first started learning English?" I queried.  Props, though, to the group--they abided by the philosophy "Leave no man behind" in spite of suffering from impatience.
• Still getting used to doing the little things for the little people: putting their hair in ponytails, putting earrings back in, tying shoes, opening food containers.
• Several of the 5th grade girls make it their mission to spy on me while I'm heating their lunches up in the microwave.  Not sure what the attraction is, but they have a blast sneaking around, hiding in the bathroom and ducking below the windows when I look their way.

Glad to have some time for rest and friends this weekend. :)