See, we'd gone to the stores--granted, at the risky lunch hour having had a late snack but no actual lunch, and with the even more risky sleep imbalance, with Bud having gotten up 1 1/2 hours earlier than yesterday and 2 hours earlier than Sis!--intending to visit first the craft store and then the bookstore. But after a quick visit to the craft store to get yarn for a prayer shawl and some t-shirts to paint some rainy afternoon, Bud tripped on the back of my foot, fell down, and scraped both knees. He was upset, refusing even to stand, though the fall and the scrapes were not the worst he's had. But he was tired.
I managed to get him into the car but by then he was hysterical, probably crying more for the sake of crying than anything else at that point. And Sis, who had stood by with her hands over her ears and then had tried to distract him with promises of Rice Krispy treats, our usual snack at the bookstore, was now getting agitated. We drove the short distance to the bookstore. But Bud refused to quit screaming or to walk. We couldn't go into the store like that. And I couldn't leave them in the car (besides being relatively unsafe, it is against the law here in CT). I couldn't think of any good options, only bad and worse--I hated the feeling of choosing between children. In the end, I knew there was no way to go into the store. So Sis was deprived of her promised Rice Krispy treat. And she started crying.
How could I make this better? We started the drive home, with Sis wimpering and Bud screeching, until quiet descended. Bud had fallen asleep. Sis began to petition for a stop at the store to get treat makings, which, again, was impossible. Then I remembered that Mama Teacher had once said she had ingredients on hand for at least two batches of treats. So I called. And she did. No, wait, she was out of cereal but had half a bag of marshmallows. And then she offered to run down to her corner store and get everything I needed.
Kindness. Generosity. Quick thinking.
And I even forgot to pay her for the groceries.
So, I owe you Mama Teacher and would have shared some treats but the kids have already put a substantial dent in them. You really saved the day and put a smile on everyone's faces. Thank you so much.
Sounds like a normal day in the life of a normal family, does it ever make you wonder how teachers handle the inevitable schoolday crises. Going back to 1938 or 1939 I remember when we used to write with pencils which had sharp points, one boy, as a joke put a pointed pencil upright just where the neighbours bottom would go when he sat down. It did! His name was Brian Freehold and he swore that 5 years later he still had some of the pencil in his body. The criminal, Robinson, was caned. I suppose girls did much the same sort ofg thing. See you.
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