Sometimes, life throws you lemons. We try to make lemonade out of them. Sometimes though, it's hard to find enough sugar to sweeten it. Today is one of those days.
I thought my day was going to be a good one. A little blogging, a dentist appointment, (ok, not so good, but I can do anything for an hour, including getting a 40 year old filling replaced), parent teacher conference for our first grader, at which I expect to get a glowing report.
Can you say "fever." Our first grader climbed into bed with me this morning, and I could feel the heat off her immediately.
On the lemonade side, I don't have to spend the next hour giving her gentle reminders to "focus." Focus on her breakfast, focus on getting dressed, focus on getting her teeth brushed.... And I get to put off the dentist until next week.
Then came the phone call from my husband. He'd just gotten a text from our son in high school. The police officer assigned to the junior high and high school for the past 12-13 years had died in his sleep. The kids and teachers were just finding out about it.
Officer Chapin was one of those rare cops that totally understood kids. Which is why he was awarded "Officer of the year" by our town's police dept. He took part in school assemblies. He played ping pong with the kids. He was a part of the school communities. The kids knew him, and he knew them. The kids trusted him...not because of his badge, but because of how he was with them.
He was, in short, a fixture in our lives.
And so today, I will hug my kids. My sick one, and my sad one. My laundry will remain undone, our dinner will likely be nuked. And I will give thanks for the day, and be glad in it.
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