end of June
- Last week I finished the first summer session at the university where I am now an adjunct. It's not my dream job - I don't know what my dream job is - but there are a lot of things I like about it. I like the people I work with. I learned quite a bit about a new aspect of linguistics. I remembered I love to teach.
- I have a week off now. A finished first grade (!). T has a break from work while waiting for some grant money to come in. So that makes our 5-year-old the only one who has somewhere to be in the morning. :)
- My transition to working was hard for D. It wasn't just me going to work; it was also him going to preK five mornings a week. We had several weeks of screaming and crying and labeling things as "NOT FUN" (Among the things that were NOT FUN: nice days, fun. Logic does not enter into this). Now that we're all home, he's the happiest little boy in the world. I start back up again next week. I hope it's easier for him the second time around.
- A was one of three kids on his baseball team to be invited to try out for the summer tournament team. He made it on to the "B" team and the game has stepped up a notch. Practices involve actual strategy now. He's loving it.
- I have mixed feelings about this team. Part of it is that A is the only black kid. Part of it is that about half his team came from the same spring season team, so they all knew each other and he didn't know any of them (Can seven-year-olds have an old boys' club?). Part of it is that the coaches don't seem to give him the attention they give some of the other kids. I've scouted out another nearby team, where he'd be among mostly black kids; maybe we'll put him on that team next year.
- Prompted in part by my feelings about this baseball team, I've been reading the boys a lot of books about African American people and history and have taken A to a couple of museums to learn more about our country's racial history. I want to be sure I get out ahead of the racial prejudice they may encounter down the road; I keep in mind that the best defense against racism is strong racial pride.
Sports are tough to navigate. We've either had great coaches, great friends, or great parents, but never at the same time. All I can say is that it changes every year, so you never know what next year will bring. And glad to hear that the job is going well. I'm hoping to follow in your footsteps soon, as I've decided this stay at home gig is too much work!
ReplyDeleteI definitely recommend working part-time to start! And I'll be looking to you for advice as this baseball thing moves to more competitive games.
DeleteWe got lucky in t-ball last year -- the team was coached by a wonderful man who is African American AND has two children who he and his wife adopted from Ethiopia. One of them was also on the team (the other was too young).
ReplyDeleteHe has opted for running camp this year -- I'm kind of sorry because he already gets enough running, and baseball -- we would have gone for coach pitched this year -- gives him a break from that while still giving him an athletic/social experience. I think maybe next year when his age group will play "for real" and be able to run more than one base at a time I might be able to convince him back in. He's really good at it.
Fortunately, the running camp is coached by his T-ball coach's cousin (that's the way things go in this town), so he will again have a strong African American role model mentoring him.
I think A will fit in given time. The kids just need to get to know him. And what's not to love about him? He's a great kid.
Wow, that sounds like a great situation! And thank you for the kind words about A.
DeleteWe're in the same situation w/ M's soccer team. He tried out and did well and we're so proud; but he is the only kid of color on this team. Other teams w/in the league are more diverse...but M did great at tryouts and is in the higher level group... Not sure what to do about it. I feel good about the racial breakdown at school, sports camp and swimming lessons. So maybe it's abotu balance and seeing how our kids respond to their situations??
ReplyDeleteWhat books did you read your boys about AA culture? I'd love some recommendations!
Yes, his school and our neighborhood is pretty diverse, so maybe the baseball team shouldn't bother me. The coaches have been giving him more attention the last couple of games, too.
DeleteWe've read a lot of simple biographies. And these two picture books were popular:
http://tinyurl.com/ITooAmAmerica (Langston Hughes poem, with nice pictures of Pullman cars)
http://tinyurl.com/OurChildrenCanSoar (great way to start discussion about each historical figure, and nice pictures)