A "Paine" in my Tushy

A Paine in my Tushy

These are the times that try men’s souls, wrote Thomas Paine in 1776.  These words written almost 250 years ago are just as relevant today as they were then. I was able to hang out at school today for a little while during the lunch program.  Let me just tell you, lunch duty was a little different than usual.  Our sweet lunch ladies are sitting under the awning outside with lunch in coolers handing bags to cars that drive up. 

The halls are quiet and echo when you walk down them now.  There is no banging of lockers, no loud voices, and the rooms are dark.  I sit alone in the office on my solitary duty and wonder how we got here.  The President has delivered his daily address and not a lot has changed in 24 hours except more stores are closing their doors and more people are worried about how they will pay their bills. 

These are the times that try men’s souls…

As educators we contemplate what the coming days and weeks will be like, and we miss our school babies.   I miss talking to them about their daily problems, their grades, their athletic accomplishments, and their triumphs.  I miss their hugs and silly jokes.  I miss telling each one of them good morning as they enter the front doors each day and singing silly songs to our special needs classes.  I miss talking with the stragglers waiting to be picked up about how their life is going.  And I even miss hanging out in the hall during bathroom breaks because that is when I get the most hugs!

So while I can’t go hug each of my school kids today, I will go home in a little while and hug my personal children a little tighter in honor of each of those children who might have needed a little love from Mama James today but didn’t get it.  

I hope they remember who loves them (You do, Mama James!).