Your hair is like snakes

Today was the first day of spring soccer for my partner's son. I'd been a complete grumpus all day for no good reason. I was irritated, sad, withdrawn, the complete gamet of grumpy emotions.  I didn't really want to do the whole soccer thing today but it's the first day and I have been pumping him up all week, because it's a new crew and new things can be scary. I also love the community that comes with soccer and I didn't want to miss the first day of intros and 'nice-to-meet-you's', 'which-one-is-yours?', 'they've-gotten-so-big,' etc. 

So I put my grumpiness aside and the three of us, my partner, M, and I, made the quick drive to the field. I mentioned, this is a new league, much closer to home, and subsequently my school. The leagues he's played on before were across town with some friends from his school. 

When we arrived the coaches were welcoming and M hopped right to it, jumping straight into drills. As my partner and I scouted out a spot to sit and watch, I spotted one of MY students! Having only seen him through a Zoom screen, it was the BIGGEST treat and mood lifter. His brother is on the same league as M! Any trace of irritation and cloudy feelings washed away as my student and I immediately started running around, playing tag, exploring the patches of four-leaf clovers, and kicking around his soccer ball. His dad is a delight and he and my partner had a jolly time making conversation and running after stray soccer balls flying every which way from the field.

I cannot express how much joy it brought me to be IN-PERSON with one of my kiddos from class, frolicking in the sunshine, and just being silly together. He requested we take a selfie to send to his mom and the other teachers in class. After a great deal of running, we laid in the grass and looked for shapes in the clouds - he spotted a fish, some pizza, a parrot, two puppies wrestling, and a chameleon. We sat up to watch his brother and M play a scrimmage, and the wind picked up. My hair clip had come out and he looked at me and exclaimed, "Ms. Head, your hair looks like snakes!" There was a brief moment of panic when he lunged toward me to play with the 'snakes' and I had to playfully, and quickly, remind him that we had to stay a little farther away from each other. 

Out of my 24 students, 18 of their families have said yes, they want to come back for in-person learning at the end of the month. Unfortunately, this kiddo is not one of my students returning. It made today extra special, and a reminder of how much magic comes from children. I may not have him back in my real classroom, but we now have a standing soccer playdate every Sunday. 



 


Comments

  1. Oh my, Lacey! What a treasure! Yes, that is a beautiful fabulous coincidence, to have this little guy show up at your guy's soccer practice. Such a great connection, that will build and build over the next many weeks, bringing lots of joy to you both (and his family!). Loved this!

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  2. What a treat after your initial grumpiness — which I'm sure was pandemic-generated; a friend of mine has been feeling uncharacteristically irritated by almost everything lately. I felt energized just reading your post. Good luck when you get back to in-person classes.

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