First … it has been a long
time since my last post. Sorry about that, but, sometimes, life takes over and
the living of it becomes priority #1. This has been a very busy week – regional
semi-final volleyball game, starting up basketball all by myself with 23
wide-eyed and eager young ladies, a nail-biting football game Friday night with
serious playoff implications (no, I don’t coach it anymore, but it’s still
nerve-racking since I remember all of the time and the effort that those kids and coaches put into a game
each week), state Cross Country meet, where our school was well-represented on
both the boys and girls sides (individual 3rd place medalist and
overall 3rd place team medalists – our best finish ever). Oh, and
that pesky little thing last Tuesday – National Election Day. My US Government
and Economics students conducted an election for our district students in
conjunction with the regular election. They were the election workers, the
ballot counters, the poll-takers; they even crafted campaign signs complete
with original slogans to hang around the polling stations – they did it all
(except for arriving at school at 6 AM to help me set up – I suppose there are
limits to what I can ask seniors to do). This being Texas and all, the results
of the election were not surprising – all four of our campuses would have
elected Governor Romney quite handily. That bit of information, though, was not
what really came through as being unique to me about this particular process.
What has been so gratifying to me, as an adult and as the teacher for this
bunch of kids, is the fact that there was an approximate 60/40% split among my
seniors for Governor Romney and President Obama. And while all of them had
differing reasons for supporting their particular candidate, through the entire
Fall semester leading up to the election – through the nominating conventions,
the speeches, the campaign stops, the debates – these students were able to
debate, press their point of view, respectfully listen to the other students’
opinions, make an informed decision, and even collaborate and assist with other
students projects who were on opposite sides of the issues and whose beliefs
were different than their own. As I watched the final few days of the campaign
unfold, and as the talking heads of the networks, the journalists, the pundits,
and the talk-radio liberals and conservatives continued to sling mud and bring
total negativity to the entire process, this small sampling of students had taken to heart the real meaning of a free and democratic society – that the
majority does, indeed, rule, that the minority views and rights must be
protected, that everyone has the right to be free to express their own views,
and that just because you have political differences, it does not mean that
adversaries have to be enemies, that respect for the opinions of others is the
right thing, and that when the process is over, we are all, still, in the big
picture, Americans. Proud, very proud, of my kids.
… and 10
1.
There oughta be a law
against NFL games ending in a tie.
2.
I realize we live in
Texas, but can we at least get a little bit of moderate? As in temperatures? It
is always hot, until it gets cold. At some point in the Fall, it oughta be just
plain cool.
3.
Fire ants are all over
the place – is this a banner year for fire ants?
4.
On the bright side,
seems to be a good pecan crop this year.
5.
As we look forward
towards this Christmas season, has anyone ever actually seen a lord a leapin’,
much less ten of them?
6.
Ever wonder what
possessed the person to take that first bite of blue cheese?
7.
Anybody besides me have
the problem of the Gasoline Phantom? You know, you have plenty fuel the night
before a major cold front comes through, then the next morning, when it’s 10
degrees, you discover all your gasoline has been siphoned by the Gasoline
Phantom?
8.
Why can I never find a
stamp when I need one, but when I don’t need one, there are 700 of them
scattered about?
9.
Ever wonder if Santa,
Mrs. Claus, and the elves eat much venison?
10.
Oregon Ducks #1 in AP poll – Quack, Quack!!!
