RB
Stories, Part 1
"There is no greater agony than bearing an untold story inside you."
- Maya Angelou
"What sticks to memory, often, are those odd little fragments that have no beginning and no end."
- Tim O'Brien
"Okay, it's definitely time to write something. We have been in school over 60 days. I'll write about that time with James. Or maybe Shamaya. No one wants to read that. Well, maybe my mom does. No one else, though."
That has been my internal dialogue every time I have sat down to write this year. I'm realizing that last year I wrote to help myself process the experience of being a new teacher. I wrote to help myself act my way into my beliefs (if I write that I have a ton of optimism, that means I actually have it, right?). This year, I haven't needed that.
I still have stories, though, ones that are ready to burst out of me. My stories aren't life changing. Some of them aren't even stories; they're just fragments. My stories are small snapshots of my life. "Sometimes," said Pooh, "the smallest things take up the most room in your heart."
First, I want to share some stories about the Hokie Cubs in the Pride of 2027. Stories have characters, and here are mine:
 Jayvyn |  Heaven |  Zaire |
|---|---|---|
 Myauna |  Gabriel |  Shamaya |
 Colby |  Makiyah |  James |
 Kisiah |  Prince |  Alyamamah |
 Mar'Quez |  Kimaya |  Dwayne |
 Leilani |
I have a love and hate relationship with this pumpkin activity. The inside of the pumpkin smells gross. When you reach in the pumpkin, your hands are slimy and sticky. If you know me, that's not exactly my cup of tea. I love it because my kids feel the same way about it, we get to build our culture more over the "Ews" and "Yucks," and we practice building our vocabulary by naming adjectives about the pumpkin.
Last Friday, we had a spirit day where students could dress up as someone for whom they are thankful. James, Dwayne, and Semarj dressed as Mr. Brock.
Mar'Quez did, too. His attire fit my everyday look a little more accurately. In fact, it looks like he raided my closet that morning to make it happen.
As for me, I dressed as Myauna.
Pretend there's this girl you like. You try to win her over, but she's not into it. She makes it seem like she would be more interested in watching the grass grow than giving into your advances. It's frustrating and it makes you want to work even harder at it.
Yep, that's Myauna when she gets older. Most of the time, Myauna looks angry or sad. She makes me work so hard to make her happy. She makes me act goofy and weird because she's goofy and weird, and that's what makes her happy.
I am grateful for that and her. Thanks, Myauna.
This is Zaire with his face painted like a cheetah.
Zaire is my kiddo who I haven't figured out how to motivate to do the right thing yet. Russell Barkley wrote, "The kids who need the most love will ask for it in the most unloving ways." This is true with Zaire.
We're working on it. We have a field lesson coming up. Last year, Zaire didn't earn any of his field lessons. This year, he didn't earn his first one. I am working on how to set Zaire up for success so that he can earn this one, so that he can get out of Gaston and Garysburg to see more of the world. I want him to see that good things really do happen when you make good choices.
Zaire, I love you and I know you can do it. We can do it.
I know what you're thinking. "Aww, they are so cute!"
They are. I am.
What a lot of people don't understand, though, is that it starts here.
I know what you're thinking. "What's 'it?'"
Doctors, lawyers, police chiefs, teachers.
Social justice, stronger communities, self-esteem, beliefs, passion.
It starts here.
It starts here before they can read reports about the Ferguson decision. It starts here before they have to wonder whether their lives are worth less than others'.
It starts here.
It starts with teachers, families, communities and kids themselves doing whatever it takes to make sure that when our kids are ready to enter the world, they are doing so with the confidence and strength necessary to make it a more just one.
You may see a cute kid wearing a fire hat who has not yet mastered how to smile for a camera. You may see a few people trying to build a tower out of cups. I see hope, opportunity, change. I know it starts here. It starts with stories like these, these fragments of daily life on a peanut field in Gaston.
