I dread the day these things are due at school. Each year parents have to send little "earthquake kits" to school to be used by your child in the event of a terrible quake. The possibility that our area here is going to experience an earthquake is pretty high. The bags are supposed to be filled with little snacks, pictures of home and things to do while they wait for mom or dad to come and rescue them. The real kicker is the note we are supposed to write to our children who are all huddled some place in the gym sobbing with their friends. It's a terrible thought to think your children are somewhere in distress and you could be stuck on the Oak street bridge. You have to write a combination of
you are going to be all right mixed with
don't worry mom is on her way sentences. It's torture. I sobbed for over an hour when I had to write my first one when Jordan entered preschool eight years ago. I called Colleen and threatened to pull my sweet boy out of school, that I was making a terrible mistake. She talked me off the cliff. It's only gotten slightly easier.
A Little Lesson: I am grateful I can tell my children in the letter how they can pray to feel the comfort of their Father in Heaven and they know what that means and how to do it. That they are never really alone. Many years ago I had a bad fall going down the stairs. When I recovered and called out for Jordan: "where were you?" He replied: "I quickly went to pray for you mom!"
I can talk about it now that I am not longer teaching in the school system. But the earthquake kits are really a hoax. It just the teacher's way of getting cool snacks, games and books. I mean after all they have to have something to do on professional days or have an extra supply of food in case they forget their lunch. This allows the government not to increase the taxes and get extra supplies at the same time. I read about this all on Michael Moore's website.
ReplyDeleteTry writing a good bye letter - we did that one before we went to Russia - paranoid that one one of the trips our plane would crash. All the documents had to be in order for such a case. Dave and I both wrote one of those - life's advice letters. We both sobbed over writing them, them sharing them with each other. It is timeless and we are leaving it in our documents - and know we each need to write one for Kate so she will have one in a loss (whether it is earlier or later.) YUCK!!!!!!!
ReplyDeleteI would believe you Colleen if it wasn't for the tummy ache my kids got when they ate the year-old candy inside the kits when they were returned at the end of last year. It wasn't pretty!
ReplyDeleteIt was worth a try.
ReplyDeletecolleen...Shelley...thanks for a good belly laugh on an otherwise dull day...It was great!!!
ReplyDeleteIf there still IS an Oak Street bridge... yikes. I'm sure this isn't making you feel any better about all of this...
ReplyDeleteWe were pretty stoked to avoid the big quake by leaving, but now I hear that Utah is ALSO due for a massive earthquake in no time at all.
I take great comfort in the fact that when there is one, the resevoir up Provo Canyon will break and within 30 minutes my office will be under water. My solace? Run to the top of the hill! Should only take 5 minutes.
Sheesh...