The View from Here

December

Yes, I know, it’s still November for another day. But I also know that the last month of the year is hiding beneath this calendar page, taunting me, tempting me…

December is my last chance to complete my 2013 projects, my last chance to look back over the past year before planning the next one.

Yes, I failed miserably at losing weight this year. Still eating too much and exercising too little. I’ve tried a dozen things that haven’t worked. Yes, I admit that what really isn’t working is me.

No, I have not written as much this year as I had hoped and planned. But I understand why, and I’m prepared to make some necessary changes in 2014 to give me more “serious” writing time. I took one step recently and eliminated my kindergarten blog. It had the lowest readership and although it was fun, it just wasn’t worth keeping. The trend in education blogs is ideas and crafts and lessons plans, not philosophy.

Yes, I did finish two genealogy books this year. I’m happy that they will make other people happy.

Yes, I took more photos, and I’m very pleased with a few of them. Photography is good for me. It makes me more aware of my surroundings and takes me outside, even when I would rather stay inside. And I’m never sorry that I ventured out.

Yes, I worked in the garden more in 2013 than during the horrible hot summer before. I planted some new flowers and experimented with a few new techniques and “met” some more gardeners through the internet.

Yes, I’ve been a better, calmer, more efficient teacher this year…at least so far. I’ve tried some new methods and abandoned some things that no longer work for me or for my students. I even cleaned my classroom closet and tossed out some old, old teaching supplies. Times change and I must change with them.

And tomorrow the month changes…

Tomorrow afternoon I’ll put up our Christmas tree.

Next week I’ll start mailing Christmas cards and packages.

The two weeks after that will be a frenzy of school activities and our last party of the year.

Then it will be time to give serious thought to the plans and goals and projects of 2014. No, I don’t make resolutions. But I am just as influenced as the next person by that “magic” date on the calendar. A new year, new hopes, new plans…

Yes, the best laid plans…

No, I don’t know what lies in store for me…

Yes, I believe that God is in charge…

But still…

 

 

Happy Thanksgiving!

Hope your day is wonderful. 

Contributing to the Delinquency of a Nation

Here we go again…down, down, down the path of no return.

When I was a child my parents spent Thanksgiving Day cooking, watching the Macy’s parade, eating, cleaning up, watching the football game, and napping. In between each activity there was talking and laughing and sometimes a bit of arguing with whatever relative happened to be in the house.  I don’t recall Mother ever forgetting anything she needed for our meal or sending anyone to the store for more of anything. No one left the house in the middle of the afternoon to go shopping.

Now “Black Friday” has slowly but surely encroached on our day of gratitude until it has crossed the magic line of midnight and become “Thrifty Thursday”. Millions of shoppers will head to the stores as early as mid-afternoon tomorrow to be the first to save a few bucks on Christmas gifts.  I predict that one day we will just skip the parade, have an early brunch, and be in the stores by NOON. Why not? Shopping and sales and savings seem to be much more important than family and friends and thankfulness.

Oh, you are shopping FOR your family and friends?

And you must get out there and beat some imaginary deadline and save lots of money on something you couldn’t otherwise afford to buy?

Do you hear yourself??? Seriously? Do not for one moment think that I believe any of that. Black Friday or Thursday or Cyber Monday is all about the thrill of the hunt. It’s about excitement and feeling special. It’s about following the latest trends and buying the “in” thing. It’s about bragging rights. It’s about a hundred things that have nothing to do with necessity.

So do whatever makes you happy tomorrow afternoon. Shop ‘til you drop. But just be aware that someone who may want to be home with their family must be in the store to wait on you. Someone who can’t afford to say “no” may put your purchases in a bag. And whatever you do tomorrow may set in motion a new standard for shopping next year and the next. Retailers will respond to what you do during the next few days and will plan next year’s sales accordingly. So…good luck to you!

Me? I’ll be napping. Most of my shopping is already done. I’ll finish the rest when I can. Somehow I never miss the big deadline…Dec. 25. 

A Touch of Winter

This morning was just a preview of what is ahead.

 

Time to prepare for cold, cold, and more cold. 

Random Thanksgiving Thoughts

1. Many people will be alone on Thanksgiving Day. I should feel sorry for them, but I don’t. There are so many reasons for being alone. And not all of them warrant sympathy. Some people even enjoy the peace and quiet and freedom of being alone. Besides, there are places you can go and things you can do if you do not want to be alone on this or any other holiday:

Visit someone in a nursing home.

Volunteer to work at a church or community dinner.

Volunteer at a mission or shelter. Many are serving meals AND passing out warm clothing.

Invite an elderly neighbor or church member to eat with you.

Arrange to eat with another single; chances are you know someone who is away from other family members.

Help deliver meals to those in your community who can’t get out. Your church or “meals on wheels” program will know who needs your services.

Eat at a restaurant.

1. Much of what we eat on T day is bad for us. Many traditional recipes have too much sugar, too much salt, and too much fat. Some newer packaged versions have questionable ingredients. So we find ourselves either making healthier changes or throwing caution to the wind for the day. I tend to do the latter. Still salad and salmon, but with buttered rolls, new potatoes, stuffing, peas, broccoli, and pie.
2. Commercially raised turkeys cannot fly, breed, or in some cases, even stand. Breeders have developed larger and larger birds for our tables so their bulk has surpassed the capabilities of their supporting skeleton. Many die of bone fractures before they are even ready to slaughter. And the hormones and other chemicals used to encourage rapid growth are not good for us.
3. There will be an empty chair at many tables this Thanksgiving. I do have sympathy for those families who have recently lost loved ones. Been there, done that. It takes some time to get over the loss and replace sadness with happy memories. But remember, that’s what our loved ones would want us to do….remember the happy times when they celebrated with us. So let’s be thankful for memories of better times. 

Dear Diary

If you have ever wondered how children reacted to the death of our president, here is a glimpse. I still have my diary from 1963-64. And this is how I looked in 1963. (No, the handsome boy wasn’t mine. He belonged to my best friend and he was graduating. I also have her picture with him.)

Dear Diary

November 22, 1963- Today President John F. Kennedy was shot and killed while touring Dallas. Lee Harvey Oswald is believed to be the assassin. The governor of Texas was also shot, but not killed. We were in homemaking when we heard the news. (I was sweeping the floor.) We couldn’t believe it!

November 23, 1963- There were pictures on TV today of the President when he was killed. There will be nothing but news on TV until his funeral on Monday.

November 24, 1963- Today Oswald was killed by a night club owner while transferring from the city to county jail. Jack Ruby shot him right out in the open!

November 25, 1963- No school today. A national day of mourning. Today they showed pictures of the funeral. There were 1,100 guests invited to the mass by Mrs. Kennedy. Every country except communist China was represented at the funeral. Even Moscow was represented.

I also kept a scrapbook of every newspaper clipping I could find. I gave it away several years ago. 

Thankful

One week until Thanksgiving! Thankful for all the usual things: family, friends, health, job. But also thankful for some quirky things:

1. Thankful for the lovely pond that greets me each morning. Seeing the sunrise reflected in its waters and watching the ducks glide across it calms me and prepares me for the day.
2. Thankful that I can read. So concerned that we still have adults in this country that cannot.
3. Thankful for curly, curly hair so I don’t have to spend time doing something else with it. Wind, rain, or shine- same hair. lol
4. Thankful for the little hug I got yesterday. Needed it.
5. Thankful for kids who do such crazy, illogical things that I just have to laugh!
6. Thankful for a husband who doesn’t laugh at me for having a spotting scope set up in front of the kitchen’s sliding glass door.
7. Thankful for being a small part of the lives of thousands of people. Genealogy research has also led me to some great friendships.
8. Thankful for discovering the joy of photography.
9. Thankful that I can still walk.
10. Thankful for another day, and another opportunity to be thankful. 

A Wonderful Woman

 

Margie Colleen Springer Simmons

September 30,1932-November 20,1999

Little Patriots

I failed to mention it, but during our Veteran’s assembly I had a flashback to my own school experience and it occurred to me that we are doing very little to instill patriotism in our younger children. Beyond teaching the flag salute and occasionally discussing military service there isn’t much included in our early educational system that encourages loyalty and citizenship. I suppose we leave most of that to the higher grades.

What made me think of it was hearing “Battle Hymn of the Republic” playing as background music and wondering how many students could sing at least one verse of it. Then I wondered if any of the adults in the audience could sing more than three verses of it. I could as a child. And many of the words came rushing back to me. We also sang “God Bless America”, “America the Beautiful”, “My Country ‘tis of Thee”, “You’re a Grand Old Flag”, and “The Star Spangled Banner”. At one school the whole student body sang a song each morning and our junior cadets brought out the flag for the flag salute.

If our patriotic lessons are lacking I suppose I am as much at fault as anyone. I need to incorporate more patriotic songs into our routine. But then there is the quandary of deciding whether “God Bless America” is politically correct in today’s educational climate. I feel guilty enough when I slip and say “Indian” instead of “Native American” or “Christmas” instead of “holiday celebration”. I am well aware that many parents are not patriotic and might take offense to my actions. So…one more thing to ponder. 

Things I'm tired of hearing about:

1. What the “stars” think, do, eat, wear. So many people in sports, music, and entertainment have proven to be such morally reprehensible disappointments as human beings that I just don’t want to bother to sort the good from the bad. I just want to watch a good performance and not think about what they do off the field or stage or screen.  
2. Everyone’s sexual preferences. If I need to know I’ll ask you. 99% of the time it’s not important to me.
3. The dangers of smoking. Seriously? If someone is stupid enough to start smoking after the years and years and years of warnings about it then let them suffer the consequences. Let’s try to keep them away from children and the non-smoking public, but let’s stop kidding ourselves about the effectiveness of television ad campaigns. No one who smokes, drinks, or uses drugs thinks all those bad things are going to happen to them.
4. Anti-aging.  I want to be old.I want to live to be ninety and I don’t care what I look like in the process. I shudder to think about how much money women waste on products that claim to erase a few wrinkles or cover up gray hair. Wear makeup and color your hair if it makes you happy, not because you are afraid of what others might think or say about your appearance. Spend those dollars on being stronger and healthier.
5. Starving children in Africa, or any other country. So many people who give money to feed children in third world countries fail to understand that many are in those situations because of political and cultural circumstances that no amount of money will ever change. The same campaigns to end world hunger have been going on since I was a child! And many of those charitable people could help starving children in their own town, but find the anonymity of foreign problems easier to handle emotionally.  
6. Prayer in school. I pray in school every day. I pray anywhere and everywhere that I want to pray. What people want to argue about is praying publicly and loudly. I don’t understand that.
7. Magic Medications. Why in the world are we suddenly inundated by hours of television commercials about the latest drugs?? Do we not trust our doctors to prescribe the medications we need? Are we now expected to diagnose our own diseases and conditions and request specific treatments?  Then why bother to have prescriptions at all? And I love the admonitions to “tell your doctor if you have had…” If my doctor doesn’t know my medical history and current health concerns then I have seriously failed to communicate with him. If I question a treatment or medication I have the option to research it before consenting, but I certainly don’t want to base my decisions on the promotions created by the drug companies.
8.  Political squabbles. This weekend as I watched some of the programs about the Kennedy family and the President’s assassination, I recalled how different my feelings were then about government officials. I thought that our leaders were special people with a “calling” to serve the public and create a better world. Now I understand that they are just people, each with their own reasons for being where they are, and many of those reasons are far from noble. It angers and upsets me to watch them argue like children in front of the whole world and I’ve lost respect for most of them.