Valentine's Spirit...
For someone sounding so bitter previously, I'm sure choosing to write about this holiday a lot. You know me, I'm trying to determine how I can break the system. I'll go out in public with all four guys swooning over me and send the message, "Ha! and YOU only have ONE!" LOL, I'm really just kidding.
On a more serious note, some days at my job frustrate me. However, some days also inspire and melt my heart. Today was one of the better days.
A kid I normally don't have any problems with was throwing paper balls, talking, and really causing a lot of problems yesterday. I hate giving detentions because the school really doesn't have a system to make sure children serve them and on top of that, I don't receive extra support if I assign a detention. I have to have kids serve it during my only lunch break or after school with me. However, I knew this kid would come, and I knew it would be an effective consequence, so I wanted to drive home the message I wasn't happy about this behavior.
The kid came to lunch detention today and immediately apologized for his behavior yesterday. He said he was just having a bad day and didn't know why he was acting like that. I told him I understood; we all have bad days sometimes. Then we continued conversing about the upcoming weekend.
I asked the child what his weekend plans are, especially with Valentine's Day & the long weekend coming up. He told me this story:
Well, for Valentine's day, my dad always used to let my mother sleep in. He would to sneak out of the house early to buy my mom roses and chocolate covered strawberries. He'd come up to her room, set the flowers on her bed, and the chocolate covered strawberries on a nightstand. It always made her feel special. Well, since my dad can't be there for her this year, I'm going to get up early. My uncle is going to pick me up. I'll go get her favorite strawberries and roses so I can come home and surprise my mom just like my dad always use to.
I mean, that's the sweetest thing I've heard of in a while. A child who knows his mom is going through difficult times, so he plans to continue this special tradition himself. This is truly inspiring to me. I think if anything could sum up the spirit of Valentine's Day, it would be this beautiful story.
On a more serious note, some days at my job frustrate me. However, some days also inspire and melt my heart. Today was one of the better days.
A kid I normally don't have any problems with was throwing paper balls, talking, and really causing a lot of problems yesterday. I hate giving detentions because the school really doesn't have a system to make sure children serve them and on top of that, I don't receive extra support if I assign a detention. I have to have kids serve it during my only lunch break or after school with me. However, I knew this kid would come, and I knew it would be an effective consequence, so I wanted to drive home the message I wasn't happy about this behavior.
The kid came to lunch detention today and immediately apologized for his behavior yesterday. He said he was just having a bad day and didn't know why he was acting like that. I told him I understood; we all have bad days sometimes. Then we continued conversing about the upcoming weekend.
I asked the child what his weekend plans are, especially with Valentine's Day & the long weekend coming up. He told me this story:
Well, for Valentine's day, my dad always used to let my mother sleep in. He would to sneak out of the house early to buy my mom roses and chocolate covered strawberries. He'd come up to her room, set the flowers on her bed, and the chocolate covered strawberries on a nightstand. It always made her feel special. Well, since my dad can't be there for her this year, I'm going to get up early. My uncle is going to pick me up. I'll go get her favorite strawberries and roses so I can come home and surprise my mom just like my dad always use to.
I mean, that's the sweetest thing I've heard of in a while. A child who knows his mom is going through difficult times, so he plans to continue this special tradition himself. This is truly inspiring to me. I think if anything could sum up the spirit of Valentine's Day, it would be this beautiful story.