Gift + Curse

The first time I became aware of her was in the 8th grade. It was my second day at the new middle school, in the new state. We had moved to our new city about a month before and it was culture shock to me. We had lived in a very white, military community, in Connecticut. My class knew one girl who's first language was Spanish and we were blown away by it. We all thought it was so cool.  The poor girl was constantly asked, "How do you say (insert curse word here) in Spanish?" My first day at this new school, I found myself seated between 3 different languages, not knowing a single word. I was floored. There were kids of all racial backgrounds at this new school. I wasn't afraid, I just wished all the kids at my old school could hear what I was hearing. The following day was a half day of elective classes. This was a year round school which meant we went to school for three months, had a month off, and Wednesdays were half days. We got to choose two elective ...

I'll start this blog with a very recent memory. Last Wednesday, December 27th, I watched as my elderly, widowed, neighbor said good-bye to her beloved cat for the last time.  It was one of the most heartbreaking things I've ever seen. I had been helping her bring her cat to the vet's office, and helping her give him medication for about 6 months. He had developed a tumor in his ear canal that was inoperable. It started with his eye not being able to fully open. He lost his appetite too. The vet gave her medication that helped stimulate his appetite, but that eventually stopped working and he started falling over a bit. He hadn't eaten in 2 days when she decided to call Compassionate Care. My phone rang around 9am. I figured she needed me to come over and help her give him his medication. Instead she told me that she had come to the decision to euthanize Britches. Her voice sounded slow and heavy over the phone.  I headed over there around 11 and the neighbo...