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Grandpa's Funeral Today

Today is Grandpa's funeral.

I cried all night.

Barely slept.

And work up early with a stomachache.

Half Mast

Our school's flag pole.

For the Lakewood Police Department.

For the brave officers who protect us.

For those who have fallen during their duty.

Most recently at the hands of a very sick man.

Time

Talking to my students:

Me: Ok, you have three minutes to finish up your art project and then it's lunchtime.

Student: Mrs. Stookey, how long is three minutes?

Me: Three minutes long.

:)

Facebook Buddies

This afternoon, I told my students that my Grandpa passed away
and that his funeral is this Saturday.

We've lightly talked about death and funerals lately
due to student's questions about great-grandparents and pets getting old.

When I was done telling the kids,
one of my students quickly raised his hand and said,
"I already knew that your Grandpa died because my mom is your buddy on Facebook."

Great.

Technology.

Awesome.

The World's School

A good friend of mine gave me THIS book a few years ago and I just love it.

If the World Were A Village: A Book about the World's People.

Here is an excerpt about the world's school:

Schooling and Literacy

A school bell calls young people of the village to school. But for some children, there is no school to go to, or they must work instead, to help feed their family.

How many people in the village of 100 go to school?

There are 38 school-aged villagers (ages 5 to 24), but only 31 of them attend school. There is 1 teacher for these students.

Not everybody in the global village is encouraged to learn to read, write and think. Of the 88 people old enough to read, 71 can read at least a bit, but 17 cannot read at all. More males are taught to read than females.

So sad.

And it's so sad because its realistic.

And true.

It's OK

I'm having a rough emotional week.

I continue to be deeply saddened by my miscarriage.

Not so much mad anymore.

Or asking why.

Just sad.

Sad.

Hard to see pregnant women.

I want to be pregnant too.

I was pregnant.

I want to still be pregnant.

And I keep getting weekly pregnancy email updates.

To thebump.com and whattoexpect.com ... I AM NO LONGER 14 WEEKS PREGNANT.

OK?

Your emails are like salt in my wounds.

And so I have changed my due date (on those websites) back to "Trying To Conceive."

And well ... that just sucks.

My time will come.

I know that.

This time wasn't right.

I know that.

But still ... sadness persists.

And that's just OK.

And this too ... shall pass.

Grandpa's Tribute Banner

My brother made this beautiful banner as a tribute to my Grandpa.

It will be displayed at Grandpa's funeral this Saturday.

Danny, your talent continues to amaze me.

Thank you for this thoughtful and heartfelt gift.

You can check out Danny's company
and more of their work on their website HERE.

Or stay up-to-date on their latest projects
from their blog HERE.

A Global Look ...

at the HIV/AIDS pandemic ...

Lord help Southern Africa.

World AIDS Day Info

Today is World AIDS Day.

Join us at OCC tonight at 7:00.

You'll hear stories and learn how you can help.

On a related note ... a mission team left for South Africa early this morning to help in Durban at iThemba Lethu ... and their other website HERE.

The same mission I went on exactly a year ago today.

Wish I was going with them.

I chose not to go this year because I was pregnant.

... I will be praying for your effectiveness as you make a difference in hundreds of young lives.

I will be posting pictures this week from our mission trip a year ago, in honor or World AIDS Day, and for the team that is down there now.