#SoL20: Lunch Break

Another aspect of school I miss is eating lunch with both colleagues and students. Lunch with colleagues and students though wasn’t so bad. On Fridays, one of the girls in my writing class would have lunch in my room. She didn’t like eating in the cafeteria. She wasn’t the first student to take lunch in my […]

#SoL20: If You Take Your Dog to the Vet

If you take your dog to the vet, you will want to drive around town. When you drive around town, you will want to look for Pokemon Go stops. When you stop at the park for a Pokemon, you will remember your friend who lives nearby. When you remember your friend nearby you will think […]

#SoL20: A Refresh

Self Distancing is hard, but that’s why trying new things is important. I read in a different room of my apartment today — curling up with a book in the spare room I set up as a library but never read in. It was nice, even if the warmth coming in from the windows made […]

#SoL20: Breaking Bread

I have never baked bread before. Never have I witnessed for myself the magic of dough doubling in size after sitting undisturbed for an hour. I have never pushed and pressed at bread dough on my kitchen counter, finding a rhythm and sticking to it. Never have I watched and waited for yeast to mix […]

#SoL20: Polish, Poise, and Peace

In thinking of ways to promote self-care, I immediately thought of pedicures. Not only because my mom and I made a habit of getting them done on occasion, but also because I finished a book recently (Little Bee by Chris Cleave) that mentioned nail polish. In the book, one of the main characters — Little […]

#SoL20: Trying to Plan

Tomorrow begins Spring Break for our school district, but it doesn’t feel like much of one since we have already been gone for a week due to the virus. That being said, I am grateful for the break because that gives me time to put some plans together. I’m a planner, it’s what I do, […]

#SoL20: Teacher Shoes

I was flipping through my notebook for ideas this morning, not exactly knowing what I wanted to write, and I found an entry (a free form poem) from January titled “Teachers Shoes.” Kicked off as soon as I get home, Laces loose and ready to slip on. The insides are worn from feet Dug deep […]

#SoL20: Cozy Canine

Today’s small pleasure is sitting at my kitchen table (turned teacher’s desk) and watching as my dog, Cooper, trots out from the bedroom. This has been our new normal for the past week. He sacrifices his spot on the bed to join me for work. Granted, that is partially because I have put a blanket […]

#SoL20: Central Living

Of all the rooms in my grandparents’ house, the living room stands out to me the most. It was like Grand Central Station in my grandparents’ house because no other part of the house could really be accessed without passing through that room. The front door, the kitchen, the play room, and the bedrooms were […]

#SoL20: School Game Night

One of my favorite non-academic aspects of the school I teach at is an event known as Game night. Game nights are hosted by our librarian (who is also a personal friend of mine) along with the student president of her library club, VHS Crew. Game nights have brought me nothing but joy because […]