Then there are those weeks....

As we march our way through any given school year, there is a glob of time that moves along.  The alarm goes off on Monday morning and the next thing you know it's Friday night.  Not a good week, but not necessarily a bad week, it was just a week.  Then there are those weeks....

It started off innocently enough but there was a hint of uneasiness. At first I thought it was the upcoming MCA testing extravaganza.  Two fabulous days of testing our students on their mastery of reading, writing and math.  We reminded them to get sleep Monday night and eat breakfast on Tuesday morning. Standing in front of gittery students our words of comfort went something like this, "Just think every 9th, 10th and 11th grader in Minnesota will be writing and bubbling along with you this morning.  In other words, you are not alone in your misery."  

Testing over, 9th grade students got back to business the next day.  I commend the Civics teacher with whom I am honored to be with twice each day.  She has unbridled faith in 9th graders, that is that they can read and comprehend, organize thoughts, use higher order thinking skills, put it all together and communicate effectively.  Her faith was sorely stretched.  For several days students researched the issues in the Minnesota legislature...racino, Vikings Stadium, Right to Work, and Gay Rights Amendment.    Students were to debate the issue.  First up was Right to Work.  Lined up in desks in the front of the room were three students taking the position for the Right to Work, three others again it.  First question out of the box...what is a union?  Silence followed.....more silence.....more silence.  Finally one student muttered...people pay dues to the company to buy gas....more silence.

Staying with gas, let's move onto gasbags.  We all know those folks, people who prattle on and on and your job is to try and figure out what they are talking about and exactly the point of it all.  I tend to get a massive headache.  At a meeting Thursday morning, our resident gasbag walked in late.  Looking up I reminded myself of my prayer on Sunday mornings to not be harsh, not be cruel, not be condesending.  1.5 seconds into his whining I launched in, fist on table and raised voice.   A bit later our principal had to call time out.  It was not nice...I know what I'll be doing Sunday morning.

What sapped my strength though was drugs and neglect.  Drugs derailed a student who I thought was going to make it to graduation in June.  I watched a steady decline over the past month.  Hoping every day he would turn the corner, he didn't.  Next week it is off to treatment, graduation and future on hold.  I boil inside knowing we can stop the drugs flooding into our communities, our homes, our schools.  But we won't because there is too much money to be made by too many people.  A professor I had in college once said, "Big, big business is bad, bad, bad."  Drugs are big business.

Neglect and verbal abuse are something you can't see...it leaves no visible marks.  You only see the results. One of my students hasn't been home for a while.  We held onto a sliver of hope because while not going home, she came to school every day and she tried.  This week she didn't until today.  Quickly putting emotional support bandaids on as fast as we could, all we can hope is they last until Monday.  If they do, she will be back.  We've called in Dakota County Social Services.  I don't understand the meager response.  I do know funds in the county were cut to the bone. 

Don't even get me started on the Vikings Stadium and the megabucks the Legislature is about to bestow on the purple and gold.  It's been one of those weeks.