Musings on the Last Day of School

I love the cyclical nature of the teaching profession.  You hang on until the end of June then start all over again in September with a clean slate.  Our annual departmental lunch at Nina's in Norwich was very enjoyable.  Fawn and I stopped in at Mrs. B's warehouse to check out what's happening in this massive jungle of thrift goods new and old.  I picked up some cute vintage J. Crew tee shirts for beans, a pink and white men's Tommy Hilfiger oxford shirt I'll cut down for myself ($1.00) and some men's shorts.  I love the baggy shorts for working around the farm.  Then back to school and work.   We've been busy cleaning our classroom - not an easy feat for an art teacher and her hard-working aide.  Fawn Dix made my art room shine and arranged everything so beautifully.  I'm getting ready for, yes, Summer School.  I decided to give it a try.  I've been assigned a primary class of ten very needy special education students. I have a week off before this adventure begins in which to do some much needed work on the farm, catch up on some projects for the coming fall shows, and float on the pond.  I have one tiny little baby duckling running around trying to keep up with Mama Duck.  I checked the nest and it has some very aromatic, cold eggs in it.  No more babies will hatch from this nest.  No line of ducklings parading about the barnyard this summer.  I hope this baby is alright.  I spent a good ten minutes trying to catch it last night and when I finally did I put it in a cage for its own protection.  Sure enough, it escaped and ran off with Mama.  Okay, I will live and let live.  I have a lot to look forward to, like picking up my new ram from Nyala Farm in Vestal, New York.  He's a white Wensleydale and should put some lovely, heavy fleeces on this winter's lambs.  I took last winter off and, as much as I missed the babies, was glad that I did.  Many nights with minus twenty temps surely would have taken a toll on my lambing.  Now it's home to the farm with boxes of "stuff" that teachers accumulate over the year.  Luckily I'm keeping this beautiful art room next year and can keep the fantastic student art up and my books on the shelves.  My summer school room is upstairs with another class using my art room but I will have access to it.   They say Summer School is a happy, fun six weeks without the stress of grades and progress reports.  Here's hoping...