I am grateful for…

…my son’s teacher.  Ever since the beginning of the school year, my son has had glowing reviews of his teacher.  He relishes having a teacher who cares about him, his classmates and just the children she teaches.  After a year with a teacher who seemed to be burnt out with teaching and all the changes LAUSD has inflicted on our teachers these last few year, my son has suddenly found renewed energy in school.  He did great last year, but he felt that he didn’t learn enough and was scared to enter this new school year.  Luckily, even though he does struggle with some subjects (things his current classmates learned last year), he continues to excel in his classes.  We had our parent-teacher conference and one of the things I’ve always wondered was why students weren’t included in the meetings.  A year or so ago, Jacob and I had a conversation about it.  I was telling him about what the teacher said and areas he did well in and areas he needed improvement and we talked about why he wasn’t included.  It shouldn’t be a secret and he is always a little worried about what we say about it.  This year, his favorite teacher included Jacob in the meeting.  She included all the students in their meetings.  Before the meeting she had him think about areas he “glowed” in and areas he needs to “grow” in.  It’s so interesting listening to his take on his achievements and where he feels he need to improve.  I had a hard time not talking but I kept my mouth shut and just listened to him.

…tonight, I will be going to one of my favorite restaurants to have dinner with one of my oldest girlfriend (not in age! she’s actually younger than me, but in time).  We go to the same restaurant every month or so to catch up with each other.  I am grateful to her, our friendship, and especially her commitment to keeping our friendship going.  As we get older, I’ve lost a lot of friends who have simply gone in different directions.  Not for bad reasons, just life taking us in separate ways and we lose connections.  Facebook helps keep some of the connections going but it is not the same as getting together and hashing out the stories of our lives.  But my friend has religiously called me when I got busy with family stuff (especially when the kids were younger) and time slipped away.

…tonight, I feel like having a drink, so I’m grateful to Uber.  They will take me to my dinner date and then safely take me back home!  I’m grateful that I have the means to do it.  I am grateful that Uber is easy and a lot more affordable than cabs or taxis (at least in the Los Angeles area).

Have a good evening!