Worried #SOL

I read Kwame Alexander's The Crossover this summer for my school's summer reading program.  I loved his definition poems, which is where I got my inspiration from today.

As I walked into my acupuncturist's office, I noticed the beginning of a tension headache.  At first, I wondered why I would be getting one at the end of a school day, and then the word WORRY filled my head.

wor•ry

[wər-e] - can't figure out how to get the line above the e in this application

mental distress or agitation
resulting from concern usually
for something impending or anticipated

As in:  A storm is hurtling

toward my parent's home

along the coast of Florida, 

and I am fraught with worry.

As in:  My friend is undergoing

treatment for throat cancer

after supporting his young son

through treatment for lymphoma, 

and I can't stop the worry.

As in:  Loss of life and

loss of function plague

those I hold dear,

and I can do nothing

but worry and support

their weary hearts.

Hide and Seek #SOL

 I have been working hard to stay organized and reduce clutter in my classroom, but I like to keep a few things around me that make me smile and remind me of a prior student or event.  I have a hedgehog that was crocheted for me by a student and a lionmouse for The Mouse that Roared, one of the first plays I directed over a decade ago, crocheted for me by the costumer.  They sit next to my computer keeping watch over the students.  

Today, I was cleaning up a station and turned around to find a lone hedgehog.  The lionmouse was missing!  My heart sank.  I looked under the papers on my table, in the drawers, on my desk, and on the floor.  It was gone.  

A few periods passed, and I continued to look around the classroom as the kids came and went.  I could not believe that someone would take something so sentimental.  

My friends came in for lunch, and I immediately shared my loss.  

Next thing I knew, my friend busted up laughing and said, "I wondered when you would notice.  I have moved him around a few times."  She pointed to the top of my television screen and declared, "There he is!"  

And there he was camouflaged on top of the television.  I don't think I ever would have found him on my own.  

Now, I have a new goal.  Revenge!  Any suggestions?