Summer Reading

My Fed Ex delivery guy goes to our church.  What are the chances of that?  We go to church 20 minutes away in the community where I was raised.    Bernie is a mountain of a man.  He has willingly played the part of the giant in several children’s productions at church.  I fondly recall the Saturday; the long waited third Harry Potter book was delivered.  It was a summer day and the whole family was in the yard.  As Bernie pulled up our teen aged son went running to grab the package.  Holding the box above his head, Bernie laughingly said, “sorry, this isn’t addressed to you Brad.” “I have to give it to the addressee.”  He walked up the drive and over to me as Brad continued to jump and miss the package.

 I do a lot of professional reading in the summer.  Most years I read 10 or more books for work.  I’m switching grade levels this year.  I am rereading some books I own, looking with a 3^rd grade focus, not Young 5’s.  In the past two weeks I’ve bought and read The Writing Thief, Culham, I’m almost done with Read Write Teach, Reif and I’ve been flipping through Chart Sense by Linder.  I’ve got 3 more books, on order.  As I decide I want to read a book I tend to immediately place the order. We live 45 minutes away from the closest book store so I use Amazon often.  I’ve done that 3 times in the past days.  I’m fortunate to have Amazon Prime, so my scattered shopping habits don’t cost me extra shipping charges. 

Last week, as my husband and I walked into church Bernie said to Wayne, “I’ve left a few packages at your house lately.”  Wayne shrugged and muttered, “I never know what’s she’s buying.”  That is true, especially at Christmas time, but in my defense he doesn’t mind my reading or purchasing habits.  I jokingly turned to Bernie and told him we needed to review the purchasing confidentiality rules.

This morning’s task is to make a list of the mentor texts Culham suggested.  I’m planning on checking which books I have in my library at school.  Yes, you’d think I’d know what I already own, but several of the titles may have looked familiar because I’d bought and shipped them to my grand-kids!   Bernie doesn’t deliver those.  Whew! 

This afternoon’s task will be to check the list against inventory and then—place another Amazon order.

It’s a good thing I’ve finished paying for our kid’s college educations, this summer’s reading might rival a tuition bill.  I’m thinking I may need to avoid Bernie in the next few weeks.

            My Fed Ex driver goes to my church.  I should get off the computer and go get dressed before Bernie knows WAY too much about me.

Love

As a young girl in the sixties I read Nancy Drew and Hardy Boys books.  I dreamed of solving cases.  I read biographies and dreamed of new inventions, thought about what made a person into a powerful leader.  I also read the Cherry Ames student nurse books.  I never once dreamed of being a nurse.  I have a notoriously weak stomach.  As I helped my mother around the house and saw some of the chores she dealt with without a shutter I wasn’t even sure I could handle being a mother.  

As a teacher I’ve solved my share of mysteries and crimes and I often lead a mighty band of ruffians down the hall, but I still possess a queasy stomach.  I’ve passed out looking at my own bruised leg.  I lay down to have my blood drawn and I always close my eyes before a syringe comes near me. 

As a daughter in law of an elderly frail woman I’m finally learning that love can overcome revolting sights.  My own children began to teach me this lesson.  They were helpless and needy and my love overcame.  When our son Brad broke his arm, I never looked at the injury, just in his eyes as we waited for the ambulance to arrive.  When my husband shattered his ankle I confess I had to put my head between my knees, and that second ambulance attendant was kind enough to take my pulse, but I should get credit for staying conscious and later for beating the ambulance to the hospital.

I’ll spare you the details of my day, but I believe I acted in love and concern and hid how uncomfortable spending the day in nurse’s aide role made me.  I hope my love has shown through. 

I hope her daughter, the family nurse, has the day off tomorrow!

Ten Things

Ten things I’ve enjoyed on my first day of vacation

1.      The first watermelon of the summer.

2.      Going to the doctor and not needing to write sub plans the night before.

3.      Ordering 3 professional books and knowing I’ll have time to read them right away.

4.      Anticipating Friday’s full moon without worrying about behaviors.

5.      A clean house!  OK, change that to cleaner.

6.      Waking up at my usual time and falling back to sleep.

7.      Drinking liquid anytime I want!

8.      Bed sheets hung out on the clothes line.

9.      Freshly mowed grass.

Anticipation of my first in person celebration of our granddaughter Lucy’s fourth birthday, Texas was a long way away