Fool Loved First

“We love because he first loved us.”—1 John 4:19

God loves me through so many friends who have reached out to me recently in tough times, and through humor—especially in my classroom. This love sustains me and inspires me to share joy with others.

April Fools’ Day is a catalyst for comical vignettes. Here are First Grade's jokes of the day:

“There’s an elephant behind you!” broke the ice, which prompted… “There’s an egg behind you!”

…What? Where? You don’t say!

“There’s a chick on your head!”

Theme-related jokes upped the ante; ironically, the chick eggs were delivered to our classroom incubator today.

My favorite joke was:

“Today’s not April Fools’ Day!”… “April Fools!”

Childlikeness must be what it means to be a fool for Christ – dependence on His mercy in the moment, and seeking joy there, even when the world tempts me to become anxious about the future.

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We also created chick haikus recently. I wrote a few examples on the board. One of my students got the concept, but wanted to know who would write the poems.

“Who’s it going to be by?” she asked, “Robert Louis Stevenson” or [my first and last name]?”

Her exposure to poetry is clearly limited to my classroom…but I could not contain surprised laughter when she used my first name… of course, the other kids just took it in stride.

I told this same child that there would be a desk check that day. When her desk was clean, she announced to me, “My desk is ready to meet you. It’s ready to say, ‘Hello.’”

I laughed and was shocked to see how clean it really was. I congratulated her on its impeccable state and she gleefully replied, “What’s my prize? A sticker? A really big trophy? A stick?” (We’re still working on the Easter Vigil fire…)

Another day I told her that she cracks me up. She replied, “You are the best teacher ever! I’m going to write you a thank you card.”

I haven’t received it yet, but I’m sure she will. Her homemade “Snow Days” card is on my fridge. The outside says, “Happy Snow Days,” and inside is the thoughtfully obvious message, “This is for you.”

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Another child found a treasure in the scrap paper bin today (used mostly for Spelling tests and paper airplanes).

“This is cool!” she exclaimed as she held a homework template I had made, but not given the children since they received assignment books –yesterday—and there was no longer a need. “Today is a very cool day for me,” she reiterated. (Simply because she found a HOMEWORK template in the SCRAP bin).

The children have begun to fashion “air craft carriers” out of desks pushed together at Choice Time—an education term (?) for free play at the end of the day. I’ve laid the law: No airplanes may fly in the air; but the little ones discovered a loop hole…the planes can leave their hands if the folded paper slides over desk “air craft carriers,” built like runways.

This new invention is a simple joy factory— for me too.

Once, with my back to the planes, I heard a knock at the door. I looked out and saw parents in dialogue at the end of the hall. They watched my interaction with a second grader who held an airplane in his hand.

“Is this yours?” he asked.

Well, it definitely wasn’t mine, I wanted to say… (the craftsmanship with probably a whole sleeve of staples was way too advanced), but I could not deny that it was not one of my student’s. I mean, there really weren’t any other options. Of course it belongs to us! But who wants to admit that?

First grade splits a classroom with second grade and I have no doubt that The Little Airplane That Could “flew” off the “air craft carrier” right under the classroom divider into second grade.

I can only imagine what it must have been like for that student to see an airplane zoom past his feet as he attempted to soak in some last bit of new knowledge before dismissal …

Needless to say, I met the gaze of the parents, laughed wholeheartedly red faced, without explanation, and returned to my room.

Why do I think I need a lot to be happy? I really just need love and laughter. Which comes from God reaching out to me, running after me, LOVING ME FIRST in the present moment.

Thank you God for the joy of today. Please help me to live HERE. Through Mary (my Mother and friend). Amen.

P.S. Our holy water has grown “allergies” … green algae. And I let my germ-a-phobe students wash their foreheads in the bathroom so they won’t get “sick.” Perhaps I’ll let them wash the bottle tomorrow. Thank you God for your everyday love.