Still Shaking My Head

Friday was our last day at school with kids. Tomorrow is our work day and then we're finished for the summer. There is talk that some of us may need to come in a day in early August for training for a new reading program, but so far nothing is etched in stone.

Let me share with you the top "still shaking my head" story of the year.

I had a second grader who would share way too much information on what all was going on in her household. At the very least, it was pretty confusing.

It seems as though her grandma is the head of the household. Her younger (kindergarten) brother (as in FULL brother) also lives there. So do her older FULL sister and HALF sister, who happens to be the FULL sister's twin (are you following me here? yes, there are junior high age twins, but they each have different fathers). Additionally, there is an older HALF brother in high school, another HALF brother who is in 3rd grade in our building, and a few cousins, who are either FULL or HALF siblings to the other cousins.

If you can follow this, you're really on the ball, because sometimes I lose my head on this one.

So about a month ago "Lisa" (not her real name) commented to me that her older cousin was not able to run track this year. This older cousin is a senior in high school and extremely talented in track and field. She was possibly on the way to getting some kind of a scholarship, until "life" got in the way.

I asked Lisa why her cousin "Marla" (again, not her real name) wasn't running track this year.

Lisa said, "She just had a baby."

I said, "I didn't know Marla was married."

Very indignantly and shockingly, Lisa replied, "She's not MARRIED! She's too YOUNG!!!!"

To which I replied, "Well Lisa, let me tell you something. In most cases you get married BEFORE you have a baby!"

She was absolutely shocked when I said that. She looked at me as if I had two heads and five arms.

It is perfectly acceptable in her world to have babies and not be married.

That Grandma sure has her hands full.