This old gal…

Early morning…still dark outside…checking to see if that neighborhood cat had come to visit…had a revelation…

The reason she’s so drawn to that kid at an island all by himself is because she was one…

Not that she acted out…never…little me followed rules…sat silently…did her work…because she had a secret…like many of those kids sitting at those islands…

A behind closed doors secret…a banging her head on the floor in a hysterical rage mother kind of secret…

Never knew when it was coming…never knew what would set it off…walking on egg shells kind of secret…so sat in that desk…quiet as a mouse…because that might keep the demons at bay…

But would watch others seek attention…get attention…and in her heart she desperately called out…notice me…

And she remembers those who did…

Who made her feel special…who saw her…who cared…and she vowed she would one day be just like them…

And she was…
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And those daughters of mine…agree…

Kids bustled into the room…

Most going to tables of three or four…one sitting to the side at an island of his own…

Can I tell you about myself?, he said…a unique greeting for a little one…of course, he heard, because I’m going to need you to be my helper today…

Because funny thing…those little ones sitting to the side at an island of their own are almost always the best behaved kids on substitute day…

Because this is their chance with someone new…to be seen…to be noticed…to be heard…

And so he was a helper…a big helper…put supplies away…made two haunted houses instead of one…and told his new teacher friend all about himself while she walked him back to his homeroom…

His favorite foods…his favorite sports…all the things he’s really good at…gifting teacher me his haunted house drawing with a sweet little note written on the back…

And this is what teacher me misses the most…making someone feel special…making someone feel important…

And isn’t that what we all want…to be seen…to be heard…to know someone cares…

See that person…notice that person…hear that person sitting there at an island all by themselves…reach out…and make a difference…
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And those daughters of mine…agree…

​Teacher me…

In new territory teaching art…but need not fear had her magical teacher bag of tricks…favorite storybooks…little fillers…the smiley face bell…

Because with subbing…no matter how good the lesson plans are…there are always holes…time gaps…and that’s when the teacher loses the class…in one way or another…

Started kindergarten with two favorite Halloween books…get the kids’ attention…tie the stories into the lesson…

The admin sitting with students…watching…engaged…comes up after…Wow, she says, how cool that you brought things along…I love how you used the storybooks…and then she finished with…

You do a really good job…

And teacher me was speechless…well almost speechless…cuz after 36 years of teaching she SHOULD be able to navigate…motivate…anticipate…

She SHOULD do a good job…because it’s her job…to do a good job…not saying she’s perfect…there are hiccups…but there’s something to be said for experience…

But even after all this time…all those years…all those days…those words…

You do a good job…from someone in authority…made old gal me feel like a five year old writing her name for the first time…

And so it is…in life…if you see something…good…say something…good…and make someone’s day…
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And those teacher daughters of mine…agree…

​Teacher me…

Sub job number 2…a different school this time…greeted kindly…welcomed back…told where the lounge was…

Went for reading ended up in art…have never taught art…not once…but hey an old gal’s always up for a challenge…even the challenge of having 6th grade as the last class of the day…on a Friday…

Was prepping when in walked the principal…saying hello…checking the schedule…saying they’ll offer help at the end of the day…

Next comes the instructional coach…so kind…so friendly…showed an old gal how to use the smart board…talked through the dynamics of each homeroom…

Finally the environmental coach…offering assistance…again saying we’ll give you support…help you navigate challenging situations…

Because subbing is hard…and sometimes with teaching it’s like that saying goes…just when you think you’ve seen it all…you see this…

And art teacher me was fine…didn’t see anything that she couldn’t anticipate…but the admin was there…stopping by…sitting in…drawing haunted houses with us all…

Because they cared…about the kids…about old gal substitute teachers…about their school…

And so it is…in life…it starts at the top…positive leadership…supportive leadership…building a team…making everyone feel valued…

Creating a fine oiled machine where even rusty old teachers feel included…supported…part of the team spending yet another fun day doing what teachers do best…

Making a difference…
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And those teacher daughters of mine…agree

That nephew of mine…

Son of the Pizza Man…has taken the legacy…the Czech grandma baking kolaches legacy…to a whole new level…

World traveller…long distance biker…husband…business owner…baking extraordinaire…

Pastries…croissants…European-inspired breads…sandwiches…sourdough…pizza-like focaccia by the slice…

Visited his shop one day…about an hour and half drive…stopped by…said hello…picked up a couple of loaves of deliciousness…

That baker and his wife adorable…his skill at baking undeniable…the breads…incredible…

And isn’t that our hope…our carry on the legacy hope…that those kids of ours…take the good they see in us…

Whatever that good may be…traditions…cultures…values…skills…and build on it…elevate it…take it to a whole new level…

What a legacy…for those we love…who love us back…to take the best of us…and make it better…
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And those daughters of mine…agree…

​That daughter of mine modeling her recent creation…the Sophie scarf.
Carrying on the legacy.

That teacher daughter of mine taking cinnamon rolls to school because she is a member of the Sunshine Committee…

Number of members in the Sunshine Committee…3.

Carrying on the legacy.

And that other busy girl of mine creating animal needlework just like her great grandma did many many years ago….

But hers a fine montage of her spirit animal, the meerkat.
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Carrying on the legacy.

These daughters of mine…

Embracing this trend called Grandmacore…cozy things that embody the stereotypical back in the day grandma…knitting…crocheting…baking…gardening…

Made this old gal think about her grandmas…definitely from back in the day…two adorable women…who could not have been more different…

One a farm wife…wore an apron and a bandana in her hair…killed chickens for homemade soup…made kolaches with her sisters…

The other went to college…worked in the healthcare field with her husband…loved to eat out and baked the occasional chocolate chip cookies with nuts…

One gardened…did needlepoint…had a little lemon tree that produced lemons…
The other did jigsaw puzzles…crossword puzzles…and was obsessed with the Iowa Hawkeyes…

One watched Lawrence Welk and cooked breakfast on Sunday mornings while the Czech polka party played in the background…
The other watched CNN…the local news…and never missed an episode of As the World Turns…

One took cooking breaks by the open kitchen window…sat on a step stool and drank a whiskey 7 over ice…
The other loved coffee with cream…day old popcorn…red licorice and butterscotch candy…

One was all business…took no crap…ran the show…
The other…quiet…aware…a wise word…a quiet chuckle…

Grandmacore…or in this case…Grandma Core…the core…the heart…from where we come…

See these ladies in those daughters of mine every day…
sewing…knitting…baking…
passionate…confident…strong willed…kind…caring…wise…
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Carrying on a legacy…of which those grandmas…and grandpas…would be so very proud…
And those brothers of mine…would agree…

Teacher me…

Packed her bags and headed up the street for her first substituting day of the year…

A day doing what she loves…doing what she knows…doing what she’s always done…teaching reading…

Not five minutes into the day…up walks a kindergartener…cute as a bug…eyes light up…smile breaks out…swings his arms wide and says…Well hello there, Grandma!..

And it didn’t stop there…perhaps a blessing or a curse…not sure to be honest…but group after group…

Are you our teacher’s grandma?..did our teacher ask her grandma to teach for her?..

Have been asked many things…have been called many things…but never Grandma this many times in one setting…

Not sure the difference…maybe more gray hair…more wrinkles…just happen to be channeling that Grandmother Energy…

Which apparently is a thing…a real thing…coined as an energy that is nurturing…supportive…knowledgeable…and embracing of life…

Which is a good thing to channel with all kids…bigs…littles…grands or not…but not gonna lie…made an appointment first thing the next day…gonna get rid of the gray…

Cuz it’s one thing to be mistaken for the grandma of a kindergartener…but a whole other thing being mistaken for the grandma of the teacher of the kindergartener…more than once…
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And that husband of mine…agrees…

This husband of mine…

Not a member of the silly word club…but does…as those daughters of mine would say…get the joke…

Those little ladies always so pleased when meeting someone who gets the joke…has the same quirky sense of humor they were raised with…

Sarcasm…laugh at yourself…play with words kind of humor…would often leave a conversation hearing…well he gets the joke…or she gets the joke…

And this husband of mine…quiet…watching from the sidelines…is witty…clever…gets the joke…

Tells stories from the past…characters with names like Smoky…Red…H…highlighting phrases they would say…and then bringing them to life again in daily conversation…

And then we both laugh…

Smoky ain’t got time for that!…money in money out…I don’t know what to say I don’t know what to tell ya…

Throw in some Seinfeldisms…the sea was angry that day my friends…no soup for you…the summer of George…

And he’s in a club of his own…

And so it is…in life…smile…laugh…find humor in the every day…start your club…your bring joy to others club…and like a flower…watch it grow…
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And those daughters of mine…agree…

That oldest daughter of mine…

Coined one of the favorite silly words way back in junior high…using it often…it catching on…now a frequent flyer still today in that Besties chat…

And one that mother of hers has been thinking about recently…
Failsauce…

A spectacular failure…finding humor in failing…humorously failing…the opposite of awesomesauce…another favorite word of that teen of mine...

And so failsauce me…is a failsauce…set many goals for the spring and summer and here it is almost Texas time…and what would you know?..

Find a church…failsauce…
Walk daily…failsauce…
Go to the Y…failsauce…
Finish writing her book…failsauce…

Researched churches…went to one joint service…it ended there…

Walked daily…until it got hot…which it was always hot…so that was that…

Could have gone to the Y…walk in the cool…do chair yoga…paid the fees but decided to go tomorrow…and tomorrow never came…

And that memoire writer me is writing…almost finished…needs some tweaking…but almost is only almost…

And so it is…in life…sometimes we’re too hard on ourselves…sometimes the difference between failsauce and awesomesauce is perspective…

Progress is progress…and any old gal…can be proud of that…
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And that husband of mine…agrees…