November 8: Bred in This Place, Boy, Parent/Teacher Conferences

Hopefully, we won't get any surprises

"Good Heaven!" said Scrooge, clasping his hands together, as he looked about him.  "I was bred in this place.  I was a boy here!"

One of the first places the Ghost of Christmas Past takes Scrooge is to his childhood school.  Scrooge revels in seeing his boyhood friends, calling out to each of them as their shadows pass by.  It's the first time in the entire book when Scrooge is happy, and it has nothing to do with money or rancor.  It's like he's a boy again, and he can't hold his emotions in check.

Today is Blessing Thursday, and I'm going to write about something not too many parents think of as a blessing:  parent/teacher conferences.  This evening, I get to talk to each of my daughter's teachers and find out how well/poorly she's doing in their classes.  I'm not too concerned about receiving bad reports.  My daughter's report card wasn't too bad.  She did get a C+ in Science, but she got A's in Math and Band and Chorus.  She's doing great.

I've always enjoyed talking with my daughter's instructors, from the time she was in preschool.  I admire these people, because they are on the front lines of education.  They work hard for very little money, and I like having the chance to tell them how much I appreciate their efforts.  That may sound    naive, but it's the way I've always felt about elementary and middle school teachers.  They have the hardest, most important jobs in the world.

That's why I think of parent/teacher conferences as a blessing.  Perhaps, when I've been at this father thing a little longer, I'll become jaded.  I'll start making excuses in order to get out of meeting my children's teachers. I have some friends who never go to parent/teacher conferences for their children.  I hope I never reach that point.

Maybe Saint Marty is still the over-achieving, straight-A student who still wants to impress his teachers.