Yesterday was one day from hell. Tim and I went to see his oncologist and were there for three hours. Two were spent waiting, one with the doc. He will need radiation on his shoulder, followed "probably" by chemo. We are taking it one step at a time, doing what needs to be done. Not the best news, but the long term prognoses is still good. Anyway, I had two more appointments yesterday after the oncologist. One was at two, which I canceled as I knew we wouldn't be done on time, and one at 3:45. Since the appointment at 3:45 was very close to the oncologist's office, we had lunch and killed time instead of going home. I showed up and they told me it was the WRONG DAY! A completely frustrating day all around.
Today, on the other hand, has been much better. Tim, our puppy Emma, and I went to the school I had been teaching at until my forced retirement this year. It's a sweet, little school with nice kids and, for the most part, supportive parents ~ a rarity in Salinas. We went there for an award ceremony. Last year the students did so well on the state tests we were awarded a Distinguished School Award. Only two other schools in the county got the award, one is a charter school, and the other is Carmel River School. Both schools have students who come from upper middle class backgrounds and whose parents are well educated professionals. A far cry from our school's population which makes it a well deserved, hard earned award.
My final year of teaching (last year) was a very, very difficult year, very stressful and tiring. The one thing that made it more tolerable was Emma. We had gotten her when she was eight weeks old, which was right before school started. Because the principal is a real animal lover she agreed to let me bring Emma to school one or two days a week. It was wonderful. Emma is such a friendly, social dog and I think that's because she was exposed to so many kids early on. She was a star today, all the kids coming up to her and petting her. She loved it and so did we.
Now that I'm officially retiring as of the end of this year, I am of two minds. I am happy to be done with the stress, fatique, and frustration that comes with the job of teaching. However, I miss the kids and my fellow teachers. Looking back on my career I am proud of the job I did and in the knowledge that I touched so many children's lives. It is, in a way, a shock to so suddenly close that long chapter in my life, to be finished with something I had done for eighteen years.