Every Thursday and Friday I arise early and ready myself to fight morning traffic so that I might get to my old stomping grounds at South Houston Intermediate. A dear friend, Becky Sullivan, convinced me to serve as a tutor for her AVID students. (More about that program later.) I have to admit that I had already forgotten what it was like to sit in traffic while everyone attempts to get to work on time. I don’t much care for that since I have retired and furthermore, I’m not particularly fond of setting an alarm. Nonetheless I generally find that I thoroughly enjoy returning to the school that was once like a home to me. Continue reading “Home is Where the Heart Is”
Month: February 2016
How Did We Get Here?
On this first day of the Lenten season I find thoughts careening through my head like marbles rolling uncontrollably around a room. There are so many concerning events taking place throughout the world that it is difficult to focus on the spiritual. I suppose that this is the reason that so many of my FB friends are leaving their walls for the next six weeks and will not return until after Easter Sunday. Sadly social media has become such a hotbed of angst in some regards that even people like Lena Dunham have sworn off of sites like Twitter until she feels safe in its environs once again. Continue reading “How Did We Get Here?”
It’s a Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood
I have generally disliked the month of February in the past, but so far this year it has been delightful. I enjoy awaking each morning to a slightly chilly house and taking my daily walks with little more than a light jacket. With the sun shining overhead and my favorite music playing through my earbuds, I cruise around my neighborhood enjoying the sights and the sounds of mid-day when there are few other people out and about. I indulge in a kind of introverted paradise in which I am alone in my thoughts and able to relax and be one with my environment. Continue reading “It’s a Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood”
What Do You Want ToBe When You Grow Up?
There was a time when I thought that I wanted to pursue some type of medical career. A field trip to Baylor College of Medicine put those plans to rest. Our group got a sneak peak into a room filled with huge jars of body parts resting in formaldehyde. I did my best to keep my composure but I was more than a bit worried that I might pass out. It was not long after that experience that I decided that I might be better suited for something else. I wasn’t quite sure what that would be, I only felt certain that it would not be either a doctor or nurse. Like so many young people I struggled to finally decide on a career path that suited my interests and abilities. In other words, I was lost. Continue reading “What Do You Want ToBe When You Grow Up?”
Who Knew?
I don’t recall learning Texas history when I was a child. I suppose that my private school didn’t deem it necessary. It wasn’t until I was teaching fourth grade that I began to glean a bit of information about our state, but even then my knowledge was somewhat incomplete. My mother-in-law, on the other hand, was filled with stories of our great state. Her relatives came to Texas before it was even a Republic and settled on about three hundred acres just north of present day downtown Houston along what is now the I-45 corridor. She grew up in the days of the city’s growth, attending public school and learning how to proudly sing Texas Our Texas. She celebrated Texas Independence Day as though it was the fourth of July. She was quite proud to have descended from one of the pioneer families of our great state and often regaled anyone willing to listen with recitations of how the place we call Texas came to be and the part that her grandparents played in its earliest days. Continue reading “Who Knew?”
All It Takes Is A Little Love 