age of innocence

This is literally "my friend." She stays by my desk at school and keeps me nice and toasty. Aptly named, wouldn't you say?

Every day in middle school is filled with drama. Someone broke up with someone. Someone said something about someone else. Someone jumped onto their desk during class. Someone broke their tooth during break time. It's these funny little stories that teachers discuss and laugh about over lunch.

Yet, sometimes, there are stories that pain the heart. Middle school is the beginning of adolescence. Realistically, these kids will experiment with smoking, alcohol and sex among other things. Sometimes I will hear about these occurrences and my heart feels as heavy as a wet sponge. I wish I could take away these life passages that kids tread to adulthood. I wish I could help them keep their innocence as long as possible. It's when I remember these things that the kids seem so old. So much older than I was at their age.

This week was movie week. I had to watched the first 45 minutes of Ratatouille ten times and The Incredibles nine times. No need to explain the monotony of repetition. However, the thing I most enjoyed about watching the same scenes over and over again was the laughter. I could count on the students to laugh at the silliest joke. To giggle at the inane humor. To coo at the cute characters. Their laughter and enjoyment brought back their childhood. I wish I could bottle up that essence, that essence of innocence, and apply it to my life whenever I was feeling a bit too grown-uppish.