There is an Upside to All This...

Matthew's teacher has a sports theme for her classroom, which Matthew loves, of course. One of the things she does to go along with her theme is to give each child a week when they are the MVP (just in case you are even more sports illiterate than me, that stands for Most Valuable Player). She has an activity each day of the week that is fun or puts that child in the spotlight. It is great fun and the kids all look forward to their week.

This week is Matthew's MVP week and today Malia and I got to eat lunch with him again. There were no special tables this time, just the opportunity to eat lunch with Matthew in the cafeteria. They have one long table set aside for the kids with nut allergies and that is where Matthew sits. Each kid is allowed to invite one friend to sit at the nut free table with them and by the time we were seated and unpacking our lunches, the table was completely crammed full of kids. It was so full that the lunch room attendant came over to send the non-allergy kids back to the other tables. The problem was, they were all nut allergy kids. So there we were, packed in like sardines, when I looked up and down the table and realized that Malia and I were the only girls. And then I remembered that in fact, boys are more likely to be allergic to nuts than girls are.

About ten years from now, Malia is really going to like those odds.

The Heartache of a Food Allergy Mom

A couple of years ago Matthew stopped eating. It took us a few weeks before we figured out what's was wrong and how to help him. A few weeks ago Matthew quit eating his lunch a school again. He was eating fine at home, but he wasn't eating at school. Every kid has days when they don't eat their lunch, so the first few days were no big deal. But as it continued we realized it was not just a random occurrence. By the time we forced a conversation on the issue, we discovered that he had about a week's worth of lunches crammed into the front pocket of his lunch box. The thing must have weighed 5 pounds and was somewhat slimy and unpleasant. So conversations ensued. After several days with no change, a chart tracking good and bad lunch days came into being. With still no change, Kev had yet another conversation with Matthew. And after some wheedling, Matthew said that he wished he could have a hot lunch.

Hearing that made my heart break just a little bit. There is absolutely nothing we can do to make a hot lunch safe for him. And he knows that. He wasn’t expecting miracles. He has just gotten to a point where he wishes he could have what the other kids are having, where he is noticing the differences and wishing his diet could be more like theirs. He has always been amazingly grown up about his allergies and while he still is, he just wants to be able to eat like everyone else even though he knows he can’t.

So we’ve hit an emotional hard spot where the food is concerned. I’m sure it won’t be the last. And even thought I would it I could, I have no way to fix it.

Journal Jar #3-If You Could Have Lunch With 3 People (Dead or Alive), Who Would They Be?

In spite of the fact that this is a completely fictional question, it has actually taken me awhile to narrow my list down to three people. If I could have lunch with someone once a week for a year, that would probably be about right for all the folks I considered. For those of you who know me well, you may feel like I’ve missed some pretty obvious choices. But know that there were about a dozen runners up.

1. As a student, I was never all that interested in history. All the dates and such bored me nearly to death. I was always intrigued when I could get a glimpse into the lives of the actual people, but most often history classes were concerned with dates, causes and effects, etc. and so I was bored. The exception to that was always Harriet Tubman. I was completely intrigued by her story, even in elementary school. I think she would have amazing tales to tell and I’ve always thought she must have been an amazing woman to put her own life in danger on numerous occasions to help others.

2. I’m an avid reader. If I’m not in the midst of a book that has completely caught my attention, I always feel a little off. So I knew that one of the people I would break bread with need to be an author. But which one? As I pondered that question, it occurred to me that off all the books I’ve read and loved, there is one author that I’ve read more often than any other: L.M. Montgomery. I read “Anne of Green Gables” for the first time when I was twelve. I received all eight books in the series for Christmas that year and over the years they have been read and reread more times than I can count. Once I made my way through the Anne series, I started reading as many of L.M. Montgomery’s books as I could find. “Emily of New Moon” and “Kilmeny of the Orchard” became other favorites. When I was in college, I would often pop into the bookstore when I was particularly stressed or overwhelmed and pick up a book by L.M. Montgomery. By then I had read most of them, but still only owned “Anne” and “Emily.” Since paperbacks were only $3 back then, it was a supportable habit, even for a poor college student. I had a L.M. Montgomery paperback in the front pocket of my school back for almost the entire five and a half years it took me to graduate. The only time I did not was when “Gone with the Wind” was my flavor of the day. Being able to tell L.M. Montgomery that she brought to my harried life a bit of peace, calm and a whisper of a time that was slower and somehow sweeter would be nice.

3. With a historical figure and an author already on my list, I figured I should choose an entertainer of some sort. This was actually a hard choice because there are so many to choose from! But I finally narrowed it down and chose Joss Whedon. For those who don’t know, he is the creator of such t.v. shows as “Buffy the Vampire” and “Firefly.” He has written screenplays for films like “Toy Story” and “The Avengers.” He has a talent for balancing the action and drama of a moment with witty one liners or humorous quips. I think a conversation with him would just be highly entertaining and probably pretty darn funny. And who doesn’t need a good laugh? I know I can always use a good guffaw.

So there it is. My very seriously pared down list of folks to chat with over fried chicken and biscuits, chicken salad and ice cream, or hot dogs.