Until June 8th do us part....

     I read a book by humorist, Irma Bombeck, many years ago called If Life is a Bowl of Cherries, Why Am I in the Pits?     I don't think life is a bowl of cherries - this week, in fact, it seems more like a blender... on high speed with a high-pitched whine accompanying it that you know really  shouldn't be there....
     And then, today, about half-way through the afternoon, I realized that, lo and behold, I was  the high-pitched whine =/  I just hate it when that happens...
     Lack of sleep doesn't become me..  And today in class when I realized I was seriously contemplating asking the kids to put their heads on their desks and meditate about history with their eyes shut for a few minutes... I knew my sleep-o-meter (as my husband would say) was pegging out at zero....
    I love having the windows open at night when the weather is like this but obviously, it's robbing me of deep sleep and all good things must come to an end. Tonight, the windows will be shut and if necessary, a fan will be running, providing white noise in the background.  Sleep I must. At this point, it's not an option.
    In addition to sleep deprivation, Senioritis (in my case, not Senior as in high school but the other type of senior) is dogging my footsteps, singing a siren song of endless delights waiting for me just beyond June 8th.  I know that's basically a lie... sort of.  On June 9th, my knees will still creak when I walk up and down stairs, my sinuses will still gimp up when mold season arrives - which in Arkansas is basically from Oct. through June, I'll still need to lose weight, bills will still have to be paid, and  the house will still have to be cleaned (ha! as if I cleaned it now...).
      But still, every day as I try  to encourage (and/or coerce)  the kids into working, I find myself routinely checking my desk calendar the way some people check their watch -  just in case I looked at it wrong the last time and maybe there's really only  8 days of instruction left instead of 11... Today I think I checked it three times...
     Everything is cyclical.  We've had spring and now it's summer.. only it isn't... quite. ANd that's where the problem lies.   I'm ready to be done. The kids are ready to be done.  I'm pretty sure everyone else associated with school is ready to be done.  But we're not.
    So if you have a friend or a loved one who is a teacher, you might say a little prayer that A) They'll be rested.. a miracle in and of itself this time of year when kids are playing ball and parents are taxi-ing their children in fifty different directions in the evenings and on weekends.  B) That they'll be able to maintain a sense of humor and have wisdom to pick their battles as kids see the finish line drawing near and consequently  up the ante with their antics...  C) That inspiration will hit them at the most unexpected and trying times and they'll suddenly have  new ideas for keeping the kids positively engaged in the learning process until June 8th do us part...