Priorities

I opened up my email program at school at 6:20 Monday morning to find this:

"Clever Boy's father called to let us know that his mother was killed in Afghanistan last week.  He won't be at school for a few days and would like you to collect work for him."

This sucks on so many levels.

One of the hazards of working in a building that serves a lot of military kids is that the odds will eventually catch up with you and you'll get a message like this.  That doesn't make it any easier.  And the fact that it isn't the first makes it suck even more.

So, we got together work for Clever Boy but I really don't care if he turns it in or not.  He has other things to deal with that are lot more important than a writing prompt and a set of workbook pages on states of matter.  Mr. Math actually talked with Clever Boy's Dad (who is divorced from Clever Boy's mom) and it was obvious that this has hit the family hard (despite the divorce) and that they need to deal with this before we need to worry about school.

So, the week after we finished The Very Bid Deal Government Mandated Test, I'm struck with the realization that although the government makes a big deal over the damn test, and everyone is so obsessed with the damn test, that when you really get down to it, IT ISN'T WHAT REALLY MATTERS.  (Although 50% of my evaluation of a teacher is now based on this damn test.)

What really matters is that we take care of our kids.

What really matters is that we are here when a kid loses his mom.

What really matters is that when a kid needs a shoulder to cry on, we're here.

What really matters is that when a dad is choked up about losing his ex-wife in the line of duty, we're here.

What really matters is that we are here, taking care of many of the kids that society doesn't really care about because they're poor, or have disabilities, or their parents have issues, or no one really cares about them at home.  We are here for them.

What really matters is that we try to do whatever we can to get these kids to grow up to be decent human beings with the skills to take care of themselves and have a happy life.

We just don't teach these kids about science, or social studies, or math, or reading, or whatever.

We're teaching them to be good people.  And it's a damn hard job.  And no freaking test is ever going to measure that.

Prayers Needed for Daniel

Since ya'll are so good at this prayers thing - I honestly think all your prayers helped Mr. Eagle through his recovery. He is, after all, going to be able to get his first day pass and leave the rehab facility this weekend!

Anyhow, one of my dearest friends' son, Daniel, was hit in the head with a softball during a game and developed a blood clot and bleeding on the brain. He's in a drug-induced coma right now and they're trying to relieve the pressure on his brain. He could use your prayers. This is a wonderful young man, who was supposed to be starting at Purdue this fall. Use your power of prayer to help pull him and his family through this.

Many thanks, as always, from the bottom of my heart. Bloggers and readers are some of the greatest people on Earth.

And Update on Mr. Eagle

Since so many of you have been keeping Mr. Eagle in your thoughts and prayers since his accident, I thought I'd give you an update - and it's a good one!

After spending the rest of May and most of June in the severe burn unit, undergoing 5 skin graft surgeries, a bout of pneumonia, and a broken nose (we suspect from trying to remove his glasses which ended up melting in the fire), he is now in a rehabilitation facility. He spent about three weeks pretty much in a drug-induced coma, but is now awake, walking, sitting up, and talking, and starting in on some extensive therapy. It's a very, very slow process - for example, just to be able to get out and walk, both of his legs have to be wrapped from the ankles to the thighs with ace bandages (to reduce swelling), which then have to be removed when he's finished. He is eating solid food, although it's a slow process as even the fingers on his mainly uninjured hand are stiff from inactivity.

He and Mrs. Eagle's daughter is getting married next week and they are hoping that he can get a day pass so he can attend the wedding, although they know it might not happen. There was some talk of postponing the wedding, but Mrs. Eagle and her daughter made the decision not to. For one thing, no one knew when he'd be able to get out and attend, and secondly, he'd probably be pretty irate if they put it off because of him. He's like that. So the wedding will happen, and hopefully he'll be there.

Mrs. Eagle, who basically has lived in the hospital for the past six weeks, is now at home most of the time as the rehab facility does not let family members stay overnight. So she goes down to visit in the afternoons, after his therapy, and comes back in the evenings. With the wedding happening next week, she's got alot on her plate, but her children (there's four, and they're all grown) are a huge help. The Eagles have some great kids.

Thanks to all of you who've kept Mr. Eagle in your thoughts and prayers. He's a fantastic person who's always put other people first, especially kids. We couldn't have come this far in his recovery without your support and prayers.

Send Some Prayers Mr. Eagle's Way

As most of my regular readers know, Mrs. Eagle is not only a teacher I collaborate with a lot, but she's also my very best friend. She makes my job so much easier, but she's also always there when I need her, she's fun to hang out with, and we have so much in common many people call us The Twins.

Without going into all the details, her husband (also a school district employee and an Army veteran) was seriously injured in an accident at his friend's auto body shop where he likes to work on restoring his antique cars. He was life-flighted to Vanderbilt University Hospital in Nashville with burns on 50% of his body. Fortunately they have the best severe burn trauma unit in the southeast there, so he's in good hands. One of their sons, who helped put out the fire, suffered burns on his hands and is also being treated by the burn unit folks, but fortunately on an out-patient basis.

Mr. Eagle is currently more or less in a drug induced coma. He has had one surgery already for skin grafts, and has months and months of recovery and rehabilitation ahead of him. Mrs. Eagle is spending most of her time down at Vanderbilt so she can visit with him the four times a day they let someone come in and sit with him.

She is already bored out of her mind.

Mrs. Eagle is one of the most determined and positive people I know. She's staying as upbeat as possible (considering the circumstances I wonder how well I'd be handling it) and she's doing her best to keep busy. I went down to visit with her today at the hospital and brought her a dozen books, a book on knitting, needles and yarn. As she said, it's a good time for me to get her knitting as she as all this time on her hands. She's trying to keep as busy as possible with something other than worrying about what hell her husband is going through.

I think those of us in the blogosphere are a powerful group of people when we put our minds to it. Which is why I'd appreciate some prayers sent up for Mr. and Mrs. Eagle. These are both people who have dedicated their lives to service to our country through their Army careers, and now service to our children through their work in education and scouting. If anyone deserved some prayers, it's these two.