“I…
I’m going…”
“I’m going to the dentist
I…
I have to go now”
With that, she turned away and walked down the hall
Six years old
A book bag as big as she was
Eyes peeking out between a fringe of bangs
and a disposable mask
It’s February, 2021
It’s almost been a year
For the life of me
I don’t have a clue who she was
and she didn’t know me
But in that random meeting
there in an elementary school hallway
we needed a connection
She needed to tell me about herself
and I needed to hear it
Yet
Less than a minute earlier
I didn’t even know
Yet There is Method 
Wow, what a moment. I liked ” A book bag as big as she was
Eyes peeking out between a fringe of bangs ”
We all need connection after a year.
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Tim, I liked how you started out with dialogue, the use of the words: “random meeting”, and interjection of the word “connection”.
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Thanks, Carol!
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Great post, Tim. Leads you on with the dialogue and kind of leaves you hanging and wondering at the end. We all need connections. Schools are great places to make them…especially between students and teachers. Did you ever notice that sometimes certain students just have an unexplainable affinity for you? I’ve noticed it and it always makes me happy I can provide some kind of connection!
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Carol, we do need connections, and you’re right–schools are great places to make them. I have noticed the affinities you asked about, and have even felt them myself. They’re one of the best parts of being a teacher!
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Sometimes those random hall connections are just the best!
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Yes!
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Love this small moment of connection. I”ve missed those this year of mostly staying at home.
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I understand what you mean. I’ve been a coach for the last four years and look forward to getting back in the classroom next year. I miss the connections!
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“She needed to tell me about herself/and I needed to hear it.”
Lovely. So many things in the last year that we didn’t know we needed until the moment we were given them as a gift.
Thanks for this, Tim!
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This last year has taught a lot of lessons, and given a number of gifts. They’re hard to spot sometimes, but they’re there!
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I’m glad she could connect with you when she needed to!
Ruth, thereisnosuchthingasagodforsakentown.blogspot.com
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