This was going to be gratitude week. I had all my posts figured out, and some of them written, but I just wasn’t excited. Gratitude week felt preachy and tiresome. When I changed the topic to love stories, the idea shot fireworks into my brain. Love stories! Love stories were deep and endless. Love stories were like an avalanche building momentum as it crashes down the mountain.
A week wasn’t long enough for a single pebble to bounce down that mountain, let alone an avalanche. I considered a month of love stories, but what topic could follow that? So it won’t be a week, it won’t be a month, it won’t even be a year of love stories, love stories are the new theme of Sapphire Cat. Love stories now and forever. Sigh...
My love story begins in my kindergarten class.
This was 1980-something, back when parents could bring treats to school in celebration of their child’s birthday.
William was in my class. William was diabetic. When birthday-parents brought trays of cupcakes for the students, they brought an apple for William.
On one of these birthday celebrations, when kids were happily licking their cupcakes clean, William shouted and hid under a table. He said he hated everyone including the teacher. Everyone gasped and looked at each other then back at William who crouched under the table, shouting and crying.
The teacher tried dragging him out, but he became a wildcat in her grip. He wriggled free and dove right back to safety. Crouched behind the chair legs, wide-eyed and crying, he was more caged animal than kindergarten student.
The class surrounded the table, at a safe distance, watching him. Some kids laughed, some kids ignored the screaming kid in the cage, and some kids joined the teacher in reasoning with him.
William said he wanted a treat. The teacher said he had his apple. He should come out and eat his delicious apple. William hated apples! He wanted a cupcake with blue frosting and sprinkles, like everyone else. But cupcakes weren't good for him. A cupcake could put him in the hospital. He didn't care about the hospital, he wanted a cupcake!
Eventually, the room fell silent except for William’s cries.
From the back of the room, a girl approached the imprisoned William. She scooted underneath the table and sat with him. With the barrier between animal and student breached, William quieted, no longer a spectacle, and the class moved on to the next activity.
While the class glued lion faces onto paper bags, the table-cage was transformed into an exclusive clubhouse. A few kids scooted under the table to join the club, listen to the conversation, and talk about their new lion-puppet. Then more kids joined them. When someone finished their lion, they ran to sit under the table. Eventually the whole class spilled out from under that table and the teacher said, that's enough!
The giggling group emerged and class continued as usual.
No one can say things were different after that. No one formed new and lasting friendships, and nothing blossomed into romance. This love story only lasted a moment, but a moment of love was all they needed.