Dreaded Tuesdays.

Tuesdays are my busiest days. Monday's are a cinch.

My day begins by downing some coffee and rushing off to Ben Franklin Elementary School to do my student observation of the fifth grade class. This is probably my favorite part of the day. I adore the students I work with and I might be biased but they are the smartest little buggers on the planet. And, they ask the funniest questions. Today one of them asked me if Tiger's go cross-eyed.

i don't know.

(and now that I read that it's not as funny as I thought in the moment)

From there i rush off to my Psych and Development of Children class. I LOVE THIS CLASS. Any class that begins with clips from Lord of the Rings for devotions is an A+ in my book.

Then American lit. We all know how I feel about this class. Who doesn't want to discuss Faulkner for two hours?!?!

From there I go to tutoring- this is what makes plain ol' Tuesday-DREADED TUESDAY. I tutoring an African refugee, Sarah, for two hours. Dont' get me wrong, I love Sarah. But she is a handful. She struggles with math facts to the point where she has to count on her fingers for simple math facts such as 7-7=0. She also is at a 1st grade reading level even though she is 10 years old. This alone I could work with, however, Sarah also struggles socially too. She will never look me in the eye, she's loses focus easily, is unresponsive, and can be very passive-aggressive. Today she even tried stabbing me with a pencil when I refused to let her skip over the words she couldn't pronounce in her reading assignment.

Again, I love her and my heart breaks for her. Sarah has never known her father and her two older brothers are no longer living at home with her mother and her. Sarah's mother works the night shift every day. So Sarah walks herself home (a good mile from the school), eats whatever her mother leaves out for her for dinner, and falls asleep watching TV every night. Even today when I asked her what she did over the weekend, she said, "Nothing." After more prodding she replied with, "I just watched TV". I continued to ask her if she spent any time with her mom to which she retorted saying that her mom was working all weekend and when she would come home during her breaks she would do housework.

What a strong woman. She is holding her family together the very best that she can, although, Sarah suffers greatly. I can't imagine the stress and the exhaustion this mother faces every day. It's wrong though. Sarah should not have to grow up in such a lonely and secluded world. When her social life is based off of what she watches on TV each day- it's no wonder she is struggling! Not to mention the neglect that her studies have taken due to the lack of strong parental figures and discipline.

Having to face this situation every Tuesday has literally been a heart-wrenching splash of cold water to the face. Wow. I am incredibly grateful for my parents. I can't put it into words. God could not have blessed me more. My father has ALWAYS been present in my life. Not only present but involved. He loves me and never fails to remind me of it each day. He's always tucked me into bed, told me bedtime stories, went to every single elementary Christmas Concert (even the recorders one), every single volleyball game, checked my math homework, pushed me to be the best that I can, provided for me, denied me when I needed to be denied, taught me and trained me, respected me, listened to me, hugged me, saved every single note, and every single cheesy craft that I have ever made him. He works his fingers to a bone so that i can go to college and live comfortably! Even today he still sends me text messages to wake up to in the morning that say "I love you sweetie! Have a great day!". You want to know who the world's greatest dad is- look at mine.

And my mom. Oh my mom. My fairy. She is the kind of woman that I hope to grow up to be. She is the smartest woman I know. If she wanted- she could be in a lab right now saving the world. Instead, she chose to stay at home and save 5 worlds instead. She has literally dedicated her life to me and my siblings. Any woman who has gone through labor five times deserves an award. She is self-less- to the extreme. She's a mom. She has that great smell too. Any time I smell my mom my mind immediately goes back to those days where she would craddle me in her arms when I was upset. She always picks me up and dusts me off when i faceplant (literally). She taught me an entire summer of geometry (pure torture- for her...math is not my strong suite). She pretty much carried me though my chemistry class too. In case you're curious at how to solve household problems using complex chemistry equations- my mom is the person to ask. She cooks, she cleans, she rushes, she's the band aid keeper, laundry extrodinair, and calmer queen. Have a problem? She sit down with a cup of tea and will listen and talk to you for hours. She teaches me to be selfless and self-sufficient. She encourages me to be creative, to be weird, to be nerdy, to be outgoing, and to find the beauty in myself and other people. She listens to me and takes me seriously. She's witty and makes me laugh. She's present and always answers no matter when I call. She has dedicated her life to caring for others- and it definitely does not go unnoticed.

I've never wanted to love, guidance, and comfort from my parents. For them- I am so, so thankful. I love you mom and dad.