Rough Day

April 12 is a day that forever sticks in my mind. On this day 6 years ago I lost my paternal grandmother. This is a woman who was the matriarch of our family. She was a fireball of energy and opinions. She is the woman who practically raised me as a child. I will forever be indebted for her love, care, and compassion for her family. I still think of her daily. There have been times where I have picked up my phone and dialed her phone number. Then, in an instant of sadness,  I realize she is gone. I miss you, Rella!

Today was a rough day at school.

I have a student named Chris who is an awesome child. He is always such a happy kid, always smiling and cracking jokes. I definitely enjoy having him on our team. Today was very uncharacteristic of Chris. He came into class and didn't say a word. I noticed that he was sitting quietly at his seat for the majority of the period. (Again, not like him at all!) When we began our partner work he chose to work alone. It was obvious that something was wrong...painfully obvious!

I took a moment to sit at my desk and check my school email. I call Chris over to my desk and quietly ask him if he was okay. I told him I noticed that something was obviously bothering him. He hung his head and said he did not want to talk about it. I assured him that was okay, but I would be here if he decided he needed to talk. At that point Chris began to cry. I was shocked by this. I led him to the hall so the other students would see him crying.

When we got to the hall, Chris turns to hug me and is sobbing uncontrollably. Something was terribly wrong with Chris. He finally tells me that his parents were getting a divorce. They only told him last night. I just stood there for a moment while Chris just cried. I told him that I will be here for him if he needs to talk about this. I let him know that my parents divorced when I was 5, so I definitely know what he might be going through.

All of this brought back some hard memories from my parents' divorce. I remember the pain I went through as a child. Like most children, I blamed myself for their divorce. It took a very long time for me to get past all of those emotions and feeling that came from their divorce. I can only only imagine the thoughts and fears running through Chris' head. I also worry about his sister whom I taught just a few years ago.

I know that divorce happens more and more each day. It is not easy for anyone, but it is substantially worse on kids. I feel for these kids!