kids say the warmest things...

'I HAAATE MS. OHHHHH!!!!' - anthony, after a series of disciplinary measures, resulting in a temporary expulsion from class (layman's terms: got kicked outta class after pushing the old bag's buttons one too many times).

' ms. oh, i'm sorry about what just happened...' - jaime, who, along w/the rest of the class, focused ALL their energies on pretending to work on their exams as silently as they could during the above escapade...

'ms. oh, you're a fun teacher. when i first came to 3rd grade, i didn't know much. now i know a lot.' - mercedes, during one of my saturday brunches w/my kids

'we're learning about each other...' - mercedes again, after i stopped myself from talking about school lessons, since we were just there (at coco's) to eat and have fun.

'i'm sorry, ms. oh. i didn't mean what i said...' - anthony, after cooling down in another classroom for 20 minutes.
*****
i have anger issues.
this year, it's called anthony.
he's been abandoned/rejected by his mother, who gave him to her sister to be raised because she 'doesn't get along' w/him. so he's being raised by his aunt while his brother is being raised by his mom, who i guess gets along w/his younger brother enough to keep him.

he's smart, w/a slight nasal speech impediment.
he's an aspiring astronaut, as staring into space is his primary function
he's as sweet as a bunny,
as quiet as a mouse (that you don't hear til you don't want to hear, then of course, it's all you hear...),
as stubborn as a mule,
and as odd as number 3 (i just made that up!).

he's my headache and my heartache
he's in my line of vision (sits in front of my station - at my school, we have teacher stations made equipment-friendly instead of desks)
he's in my range of hearing (front and center when we're on the rug)
i just hope he's within my reach within this year, or at least within his memory, if time comes to pass.
*****
'you're pretty...' - unknown student walking by me in the hall. :)

(alright, so she was a special ed student...they're the most honest!)

cancer...

i remember being told in the 80's that by the year 2000, the average person would know 5 people personally, who had contracted the hiv virus. i don't know of anyone in my personal life who's been diagnosed as having the hiv virus, but i know plenty who have been diagnosed w/cancer of some sort:
damian-leukemia
chiyon-stomach
gina-breast
dean-brain
franklin-brain
katie's mom-lung
julie's mom-some sort

our bodies are mutating. the fallen nature of all of creation and our blatant abuse of it is taking its toll. hiv is somewhat preventable, according to lifestyle (exceptions being blood transfusions, etc). but cancer is unpredictable, indiscriminate, unstoppable.

or at least it appears so.
i'm sure it IS predictable, IS stoppable. to God. by God.
it's only by His revelation that other discoveries were made. will He reveal this mystery as well? and if so, when? or maybe, to whom? or is it, who will search for what seems unsearchable, reach for what seems unreachable? but aren't there scores of people doing just that?

i wonder who the first cancer patient was...and if there'll ever be a last cancer fatality...