John (not his real name) was a student in my first grade class and, nine years later, was also a student in my husband Ed’s high school biology class. I remember him as a lively red-haired little guy. By the time he was in high school, “lively” would be a mild term. Ed saw through the antics and challenged this bright young man to live up to his potential. After he graduated from high school, John joined the Marines. Ed and I kept in touch, often taking him out for lunch when he was home on leave. We’d lost touch for a while, and were excited to receive an invitation to his wedding this fall. Of course, we had to go.
My thoughts from Phoenix to Indianapolis on a recent trip:
Traffic from Tucson to Phoenix is horrendous
Glad we reserved a parking space in the garage.
Made it to the airport in plenty of time
Ed’s bag doesn’t get through security. “Do you have any aerosols in here?”“NO.” “What’s this?” Agent pulls out a container of shaving cream.“I forgot about that…” Dangerous shaving cream tossed in trash.
Spent $18 on a sandwich, bottle of water, and Rolaids to take on the plane. Sheesh!
Group 6 boarding…Waiting…waiting…finally board and find our seats. Right behind the wing. Ed has to have an aisle seat. He thinks the aisle seat gives him more room to stretch his legs, but can he really? I don’t think you’re allowed to stick your legs into the aisle. I take the middle seat.
Lucky day! The plane is loaded and no one is in the window seat! I move over leaving the middle seat open. Wiggle room!
American Airlines is offering free movies on your own device. I finally get it figured out and get Ed settled in with Ghost Busters. They look so tiny on his phone’s little screen, but Ed’s content and occupied. I settle in with a book.
Had a hard time packing for this trip…high 80s in Phoenix, will be 50s-60s and probably rainy in Indiana.
Going to a wedding…in a barn…invite said “casual formal”…what the heck does that mean?
Packed my only dress. It’s sleeveless. Threw in a jean jacket and boots. Is that casual formal? It’s a barn wedding… Indiana… In October…I’ll be fine.
Dinner. Ed and I share the $12 sandwich I bought before boarding, Airline pretzels round out the meal. Eating slowly so we can relax with our masks off for an extra moment or two.
I dangle my mask from one ear so everyone knows I have one and will put it on as soon as I finish eating and drinking. I’m such a rule follower…
On American Airlines you get a whole can when you order a diet Coke…not just a little cup. I almost feel like I’m in first class. I refill my little cup of ice three times!
One hour in…the bathroom line forms…probably all those people who drank a whole can of Diet Coke.
Two more hours to go. Hope I can hold out. Rather not use the plane bathroom unless I have to.
11:00 pm Indy time… dark, but I can tell we’re getting close. We experience turbulence as we descend through dense cloud cover. Why is it always raining when I get to Indiana? I hope I get to see some Fall leaves. The Fasten Seatbelt sign blinks on as we bump into Indianapolis.
Threads of thought
It’s interesting to be traveling again. Have you ventured out yet?
It’s that time of year again. Pumpkin carving, trick-or-treaters, classroom parties. Being retired, I no longer have to plan and take part in classroom Halloween activities. But I’ve experienced my share of them during my 37 year career as a kindergarten, first-grade, and fourth-grade teacher. Here are my Ghosts of Halloween past:
One of my first Halloweens as a teacher…Jeans, straw hat, hubby’s flannel shirt…A Scarecrow? Spooky owls with egg carton eyes hang from the ceiling.
Kindergarten
I started my teaching career as a kindergarten teacher in 1975. During that time kindergarten was a half-day program in public schools, if they even offered it at all. In one sense, the half-day time frame was a great setup for Halloween. The students came to school dressed in costume and we played some games (Guess who’s under the mask, Halloween Bingo, maybe a simple art activity.) A school-wide parade would follow. Kindergarteners always led the way, and we picked up the other-grade classes as we wound our way around the school. By the end of the morning, we had a snack… brought in by parents, homemade, and extra sugary. If you were lucky enough to reserve one of the school’s projectors, you could end the session with the Charlie Brown’s Great Pumpkin. By then, it was time to send the little goblins home on a sugar high for the parents to deal with.
Half-day Kindergarten teachers had one disadvantage, however. After a quick lunch break, during which I had to clean up the classroom and reset my activities, I had to get ready to party all over again with the afternoon session, pretending that I was equally enthused the second time around.
First Grade
Sometime during my years as a first grade teacher, things began to change. The first wave of social consciousness and health awareness hit the school scene and altered our holiday celebrations. Some parents objected to Halloween on religious grounds and did not want their children to dress up in objectionable costumes such as witches or devils. In some years, we banned the word “Halloween” and called the celebration at the end of October “Harvest Festival”. Students could dress in costume if they came as a book character. (“But Mrs. VanDeventer…. Spiderman is in a book!”)
Miss Viola Swamp
Viola was a mean substitute teacher…
…who arrived to tame Miss Nelson’s unruly class in this James Marshall book
School officials wanted to focus on health. Sugary treats were banned in favor of “healthy snacks” and teachers scrambled to come up with ways to make carrot sticks and cheese look like fun. (I remember making spiders out of Ritz Cracker-and-peanutbutter bodies with pretzel-stick legs and raisin eyes. Yum..)
Fourth Grade
During my last three years of teaching as a fourth-grade teacher, Halloween was back and costumes were allowed. However, you had many, many state standards to cover and couldn’t afford to “take a day off” to party. Movies were not allowed unless there was a specific ‘tie-in” with the curriculum. Sorry Charlie (Brown.)My teaching team and I came up with what I thought was a great idea. Each of the 4 teachers created a standard-based, Halloween-themed activity in Language Arts, Math, Science, or Writing. The students rotated through the classrooms throughout the day, keeping everyone engaged until the end-of-the-day snack. Unhealthy treats were allowed in moderation… except now everyone has allergies. No peanuts, gluten, dairy, tree nuts…..
Retired
It’s fun to think about those days and sometimes, I really do miss the kids, the excitement, the fun. But now I’m happy to say that I celebrate Halloween with pictures of my grandchildren in their costumes and by sitting in my driveway on a warm Arizona night handing out candy to the neighborhood kids.
( I hold back a few of the snickers to eat while I’m watching The Great Pumpkin from the comfort of my own living room.)
Granddaughters Melanie (AKA Elsa) and Michaela (AKA Mayura Miraculous) have fun at the Trunk-or -Treat sponsored by Autism Community Connections https://autismcc-in.org/
Threads of Thought
Read more about my experiences in teaching and retirement in my newly released book: Out of the Crayon Box: Thoughts on Teaching, Retirement, and Life
Photo from an Autumn hike in the nearby Catalina Mountains
Ed and I moved to Arizona three years ago. We were drawn to the turquoise blue skies, the mild winters, beautiful sunsets, and the way you can see a million stars in the clear night sky. But, I’ll have to admit, I miss fall. Don’t get me wrong, we have seasons here in the desert southwest, winters differ greatly from summers, but the changes are subtle. You have to be on the lookout or they will pass you by. Here’s how I do Autumn in Arizona:
Forget about Daylight Savings Time
It doesn’t exist in Arizona. We are one of the two states that don’t observe it. (The other being Hawaii, where they don’t worry about time anyway.) I’s rather nice. There’s no adjustment period when the clock suddenly “falls back” or “springs forward.” The only slight adjustment I make is keeping track of what time my friends and family in Michigan, Illinois, Indiana, and Georgia are on when it comes time to make a phone call.
It is rather nice. Right now, we have almost exactly 12 hours of sunlight each day. Dawn breaks at 6:00 am and dusk arrives at 6:20. Being retired, I have the luxury of waking with the sun each morning, meaning I sleep in longer in the winter. My biological clock is in sync with the seasons. (That’s not to say that I go to bed at 6:30 in the evening, mind you. The artificial daylight created by household lights and electronic devices plays a part… and a good Netflix binge can wreck havoc with your sleep patterns.)
A gateway wreath with silk sunflowers and fake leaves welcomes guests.
Add Some Fall Decor
There are no deciduous trees here unless you go up the mountain, so forget about leaves (nothing to rake, however.) Here in Arizona, you have to make your own autumn ambience. It’s a feeble attempt, I know, but it helps.
fabric pumpkins pile on the hall table
pumpkin spice candle warmer
Close Out the Pool
Just last week I enjoyed my last swim in our small, unheated backyard pool. Though the daytime temps are running in the mid 80s right now, it’s not unusual for it to drop 30 to 40 degrees overnight, making the water too chilly even with the solar cover.
Bathing suit, shorts, sweatshirt? Who knows what to wear?
Wardrobe Chages
It took me years to figure out how to dress for the seasons in Arizona. A friend of mine who’s been here longer than I have says “It’s all about layering.” I still don’t have it right. The other day I met some friends for coffee. It was 50 degrees when I left home. I put on a long- sleeved tee and a skirt. We sat outside, and by the time our lattes arrived, I was too hot. Back home, I changed into shorts and a short-sleeved tee shirt. That afternoon I had my bathing suit on (for my last-swim-of-the-year.) When I got out of the pool I was freezing; I put on yoga pants and a sweat shirt for the evening. We do a lot of laundry at our house.
Our backyard pomegranate tree
Pomegranate Harvest
In the midwest, we had access apple trees and I would often take my kindergarten class to the local orchard. Now we have a pomeganate tree. It’s a beautiful tree and the crimson fruit is harvested in the fall yelding an abundance of juicy, red seeds. But you can’t make a pomegranate pie…
Seasonal Food
Cool, crisp salads are making way for soups, Ed’s homemade bread, and yes, I’ll admit it: Pumpkin Spice Latte. My new favorite comes from Trader Joe and I mix it in with my chai tea. Perfect for sipping by the fire pit in the evening while making s’mores.
Yeah, I know, it’s not the same. Those of you who live in other parts of the country will have your beautiful leaves, the first snowfall, White Christmas. I miss it, and in fact, am planning a trip to the Midwest soon for my “fall fix.” But come January, February, and March, you’ll be calling me for reservations. http://seamslikeastory.com/good-company/
Threads of Thought:
Fall is a great time to curl up with a good book. Hmmm, I think I have one around here somewhere…
I’m happy to announce that I have just published Out of the Crayon Box: Thoughts on Teaching, Retirement, and Life. It was an interesting process, and I’ll admit, it amazed me to see three years of writing and editing, and rewriting.. and editing… and rewriting… finally come together in tangible form.http://amazon.com/author/debravandeventer
Why Did I Write This Book?
When I first retired from 37 years of teaching, I had a difficult time adjusting to “life on the outside.” I looked for resources, books, or articles written by someone who had experienced the same feelings. My search came up short. Surely, I wasn’t the only retired teacher who was going through this. I journaled. I wrote about feelings and happenings during my three-year transition from teaching to… well, non-teaching. Before I knew it, I discovered I had written a book!
It Takes a Village
I’ve always had a passion for writing, but my teaching profession left very little time or energy to pursue it. Once retired, I wrote in earnest. I found a local writers forum and worked with a critique group. It was a learning curve, to put it mildly, but bit by bit, with a lot of help from my friends, my manuscript took shape.
Could a self-professed Star-Bellied Sneetch make it on the outside?
What is the Book About?
Out of the Crayon Box is a memoir of the first three years of my retired life. It’s an often humorous, sometimes poignant journey to discover a life after teaching. Through these pages I explore:
How to know when it’s time to retire
What to do with unstructured time in retirement
Can I really go to Starbucks in the middle of the day?
Ways to honor my past as a teacher
Self-discovery through travel
Adjusting to life with a retired spouse
Finding renewed purpose and passion for life
1976 Stinesville Elementary. The journey begins.
2018 Manzanita Elementary, blowing bubbles on retirement day.
Check it out, and if you enjoy the book, be sure to leave a review on Amazon and help me spread the word! For updates on my retired-life journey subscribe to my blog http://seamslikeastory.com
