Bad things are going to happen-
Your shoes will get wet and
Your armpits will stink.
Someone will steal
Your Snickers bar
off of your desk, or you will
leave gum in your new pants when
You put them in the dryer.
Your dog will run away and never
come back- and your nephew will
Hit you in the face. You'll forget
Your keys, after you lock the door-
And no one's home to let you back in.
Your grandma will pass away, and
No one will help pay for the funeral.
No matter how much You organize-
You'll forget
to get toilet paper
to pay Your bills, or
to brush Your teeth.
Whoever said life was easy...
You buy another Snickers bar, and
Sit down on the couch to relax.
The T.V's broken, the lights are off.
It's just You, alone, in this room.
Silent, serenity.
Whitney,
ReplyDeleteThank you so much for sharing this! It's so true, because some things just seem beyond our control. I find it interesting how you put "your grandma will die" because, this is exactly what I'm going through right now. My grandmother passed away yesterday.
I had to sit and reflect, and cry, and cry, and cry - and I can't tell you how many times I wanted to send an e-mail saying "I quit. I raise my white flag, I'm over school. forever." but I knew that my grandma would be so disappointed in me if I had done that. I'm so heartbroken and grieving her loss; however, I feel a new sense of motivation to do well, and to be my best, to make her look down on me to be proud. It's bittersweet, because her last words to me were last week. She told me I was her girl and she loved me and was so proud of me. God knows, I love her more than this life itself. Just for her sake, I want to be the best teacher I can be.
Anyway, back to your amazing poem! Surely, you and I, we're going to forget to zip our zipper, we'll probably walk out of the bathroom with toilet paper stuck to our shoes. But the memories, the excitement that will be felt in May will be so overwhelming, that the joy will overshadow the hard times. I wish you so much luck and happiness as our years of college come to a close, you will be such a wonderful teacher, Whitney.
Best,
Amber
Amber,
DeleteThank you for such a thoughtful response. I wrote this poem incorporating many things that I have dealt with in my life. I am so glad that you could relate to it... and I am sorry it made you cry =(
As you may know, I lost my grandma Doni last July and she was like my mother, she raised me from birth and I took care of her for the last six years of her life. It was the biggest SLAP in the face I have ever had, it taught me that every second counts. She was the person who showed me how to live.
Again thank you for such a wonderful message, you are in my prayers. You are such a unique and wonderful person, and you will impact so many lives!
---Whitney
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DeleteWhitney,
ReplyDeleteThis is a lovely piece...and I can really relate: my classroom is freezing, the kids steal my favorite pens, I struggle to find time to do my laundry, my cat is ALWAYS in heat and yowls all night long, and I'm always paranoid about locking my only set of car keys in my car!
On a more serious note to both you and Amber, I completely understand how it feels to lose a grandparent when you're already struggling. I lost my grandpa at the beginning of my sophomore year of college. He lived right down the street from me my entire life and was sooo proud that I was going to school to be a doctor...that was my last semester of PreMed. It was a difficult decision because I was so afraid of disappointing him. I soon realized, though, that he would be proud of me no matter what, just like he always had been.
I am sorry for both of your losses and hope that you continue to think of them and be inspired to push onward because you'll both be amazing teachers one day!
Theresa :)
This is very nicely written, Whitney. I would like to echo the sentiments of everybody else in regards to how well it goes beyond just the little, uncomfortable details of day to day teaching, but touches on some of the more serious subjects that we all have to deal with in life. It certainly is not easy to lose somebody, especially as you begin moving into a very important and, arguably, life changing period of your life as it is. I, too, lost somebody I was close to this past summer and it forced me to reevaluate things...beyond just a little armpit stink that is.
ReplyDeleteThanks again for sharing this Whitney, best of luck this semester.!
-Scott Ufford