Gratitude from the Third Grade

Last day of school today.  The third graders at Friends’ School sent me home with a collection of thank you notes they had written after I helped them with their end-of-year play, Roald Dahl’s James and the Giant Peach.

As a head of school, I don’t have as much contact with students as I once did during my twenty years in the classroom, so I cherished my time in rehearsals with the third grade.  They did an outstanding job and the play turned out wonderfully.  The thank you notes contained some great lines:

“Thank you for helping me with the play.  I learned a lot about being loud!”

“Steve, you really can direct.  You showed me how to change in my costume really fast.”

“Thank you so much for hepping me with all my lines and were to stand and when to talk. You heped make me a akter.”  (We’re still working on spelling in 3^rd grade.)

“Thank you for helping me with my accent.”

“I learned what stage left and stage right is.”

“Dear Steve, Hey Steve, Thank you for making me the best silkworm ever.”

“What I learned is that you don’t want to talk too fast because the audience won’t understand you.”

“Thank you soooo much.  It was my favorite play ever.”

And my two favorites:

“Thank you for being a good person.” (Wow!)

And this one from a girl who was at a different school last year:


“Dear Steve, you rock.  Sorry I just HAD to say that.  Thank you so so much for helping us with the play!  You the best directer and your way nicer than my old princable Mr Neil.  He’s all gloomy but your all nice and chill.”

So now you know - I’m one chill princable.  Happy summer, kids!

Corrections, Bagels and the Future of Amerika

An early morning stop at a bagel shop near my work brought such delight recently.  And not just for the good grains bagel, toasted with cream cheese.

For I have been known to be curmudgeonly, particularly around poor grammar, and these corrections pleased me no end.  This note, pictured here, had been taped onto the cash register at the bagel store. Someone in management clearly lacked either a good education or at least a good editor – two essentials in life as far as I’m concerned – and I was happy to see these correction marks.  My hope is that a customer, perhaps curmudgeonly like myself, someone waiting to pay, had whipped out a pen and set management straight.

I have been known to get irked, driving through town, when seeing signs at Kwik Kopy Printing and the Dun Rite Construction Company.  In college, I once went door to door in a misguided attempt to make money for both myself and Kleeneze Cleaning Supplies.  There’s a Kwik Kar Lube not far from my house that I boycott on principal.

Noble yet erroneous attempts to spell necessary or definitely can be forgiven.  I am not a fan of lite beer or saying good nite.  When texting first came on the scene a few years ago, I knew I would eventually succumb.  I swore I would take no shortcuts.  Alas, I kid u not, I have to admit I have. 

Yet a curmudgeon I do not want to be.  I prefer to be amused.  So, to bring a smile to your day, I offer the following photos of protestors, deeply concerned about the future of America.  

We should all begin to worry, deeply.