The Burrow

There were smiles. Most of all, there were smiles.  There were flowers  and butterflies  and trains.  CTG was remembered  by family and friends and new immigrants whose hearts were in the right place,  even if their English was just a little bit off.  The path was 3.2 miles round trip, and it was, no doubt a   There was an acknowledgment of the sense of community. There were races begun  and ended.  There were pleas for help and notes that ran out of room.   Can't you see the little one knowing that the words were more important than the spacing  and not wanting to lose the connection by moving his feet and stepping back ? There was lots of love  and lots of inspiration.  There was relief  and more love. This one comes in two parts: "I *heart* you dad and my dad  said I *heart* you too"  ...

It's so nice when your children have skill sets.  It's especially wonderful when those skill sets complement your own.  The very best is when they offer those skill sets to the task at hand. Right now, I am a very happy person. GRIN , my hassle-free-volunteering-not-for-profit, is joining with No Excuses University 's Tucson campuses to fill their classrooms with collegiate decor.  Bulletin boards are covered with powerful imagery that makes a statement: college is in your future.  Kindergarteners play going to college with the blocks; many of their first generation parents knew little if any schooling at all.  It's a remarkable concept, one which the students embrace with enthusiasm.  "You brought us that Penn State garbage can," was my host's introduction as he escorted me to my destination on the middle school's campus last May.  We talked about engineering and the weather in Pennsylvania and it was like any other middle class conversation wo...

They do Valentines Day up right at Amphi Middle School. GRIN  was there to make valentines. $30 worth of supplies covered tables in the corner of the cafeteria. And the kids loved it. The 6th grade girls were the first visitors. They made cards for favorite teachers. They made cards for their BFF's The boys were a harder sell.... but once his friend finished, well...   The grown up girls made them. The ultra-cool girls made them. Who I was and why I was there came up a time or two. It was Nim's first day at AMS. He arrived from Nepal over the weekend. His translator has been here a lot longer  and was in a hurry to get to lunch. But Nim held his ground. Please note Nim and Kathleen fist-bumping over his very first ever in his whole life what in the world is this holiday valentine. His friend printed the message in English. Welcome to America, Nim <3 Liz gave us a valentine right back. It was our ple...