It's My Birthday, and I'll Cry If I Want To

THe other day it was Crazy Hair Day at our school. I, of course, did not participate...but kids had fun. Many of my students did have crazy hair styles. Later that day, just as I had gotten the kids started on a reading assessment so I could give some end of the year reading grades, my door opens as a parent peeks in. In a loud voice (I love how they seem to not even realize that hey, the room is deadly silent, so something important must be going on...)she said, "Can I have anyone who wore a crazy hair style to come into the hallway for a picture?" I sigh, and say yes. I dismiss about half my class, and get the other half settled. Quickly, the kids who left came back. "Her battery died," they said, "and she'll come back later for a picture." Oh joy, I thought. Another interruption. About 2 pm the same mom opens my door. "I can take the picture now," she tells me. "Well, about half of my class is not here," I told her. "They are in math interventions. If you want to come back at about 3:10, they'll just be down the hall in music, and you could grab them then." She said that would work. So we went about the rest of our day. At 2:35 I sent the kids out for recess. After recess we just stack and pack, and they get either music or pe for the last 35 minutes of the day. As we lined up in the hallway outside of music, Tina, an adorable little girls whose birthday it was that day, came up to me. "Mrs. Teacher!" she said. "I didn't get my picture taken for Crazy Hair Day!" "Well, no one did," I replied. "Mrs. Parent Helper's battery died. I told her to grab you guys from music to get the picture." "But other kids are saying they got their picture taken!" she cried. I looked to my other crazy-haired students for verification. They told my that Mrs. Parent Helper had grabbed them during recess. Tina had not gotten her picture taken with the group from my class. "I'm sorry, Honey," I said. "I guess she did take the picture." Tina walked to the back of the line, her head hanging. Soon, had her head in her hands and was crying. That damn mom, I thought. Why didn't she take the kids when I told her? Why did she think grabbing them at recess was a good idea? "C'mon, Tina," I said. "I'm going to find someone to take your picture!" I marched her, still crying, to the office. I hoped at least that Mr. Principal would be there, or that we could find him, as he lives for taking pictures of students and school events. We got into the office, and lo and behold, there was Mrs. Parent Helper, signing out her younger daughter from school. "Oh, good!" I exclaimed. "We found you! Tina didn't get her picture taken for Crazy Hair Day when you grabbed the kids at recess, and she is very upset. And it's her birthday today. No one should have to be upset on their birthday..." So Mrs. Parent Helper took a picture of a smiling, red-eyed Tina with Crazy Hair. I hope it makes it into the year book.