Tuesday, May 30, 2006

You done good, Donna

Gee. I was going to a party tonight for my good friend Donna, but it's postponed because she is down in her back. She is retiring after almost as many years as I had in. She came when Lyd was in the fifth grade, and she has always been a special person to our family. For one thing, she shared our sense of humor to some extent and appreciated some of the things we appreciated. She was the kind of teacher who kept live animals in her classroom--I never was into that; my only foray in that direction was a betta fish who died. Back to the animals: She told me one day that she noticed Lyd was being particularly quiet. She quietly walked over to Lyd's desk and saw that Lyd was sitting there holding the class guinea pig. Lyd always loved puppies and most small mammals, but we had never had a pet at our house at that time. Donna offered to let Lyd take the pig home for the summer. Unfortunately, nature intervened, and the little critter died before we got a chance to keep it.

Another thing about Donna was how she laughed and loved life and kids. The year Lyd was in her room, one darling little boy named Carlton was also in there. Carlton came up to Donna one day and quietly asked, "Ms. Whit, may I go--" and then he held out his open palm where he had written PP. That's about the first thing I remember about Carlton, and I'm sure he has done great things by now. Funny what we teachers store up for years. It reminds me of an art song I once knew. The lyrics go something like this: "Four ducks on a pond, the green grass beyond, lalalalalalala (two more lines I've forgotten!)", and then the ending, "What a lovely thing to remember for years, to remember with tears."

3 comments:

Jenn-Jenn, the Mother Hen said...

So when did Ralphie join the family? And how old was he when he passed on?

ann said...

i know he died on president's day, i remember watching my mom and dad hug at the end of the hall in front of the kitchen. i miss ralphie sometimes. but daniel likes bunnies, too, so maybe we'll get our own ralphie some day.

Lydia said...

Ralphie joined the family,hmmm, let's see--Well, I think he was 7 when he died and that was when I was in college, so he probably moved in when I was a freshman or sophomore in high school. Sophomore, I'm pretty sure. Goober P was there before Ralphie--she was a red guinea pig with cowlicks. Cutest thing! Ralphie was way more a member of the family than Goob, though. Closest thing I ever had to a puppy.

I can't believe Ms.Whitaker is retiring!!! She is one of the best teachers EVER!!!! I was SOO excited when I was put in her class. She rocked!