Life is Hard

It's hard being six. You can learn a lot in a very short time.

You can learn:

- that you are the only Girl Scout in your troop who has NOT been named Star Student at the weekly assembly. The other GS will ask you, "You're STILL not a Star Student?" and the other mothers will look at your mother and smirk. You will come home every Friday afternoon after the assembly and cry, "Don't they like me?" "Aren't I a good girl?" "Aren't I smart, Mommy?" Your mother will have to swallow her tears and say, "Yes, sweetheart, of course they like you! It's just not your turn. They have to give everyone a chance. It will be your turn soon enough."

- that even if you plant your seed JUST like your teacher tells you to, your plant can still be the ONLY plant in the class that doesn't grow.

- that even if you dress up in a pink plaid dress, pink bandana sash, and authentic pink cowgirl boots, you won't be chosen as the Farmer's Wife in the Kindergarten play. A star student will be.

- that if you're sick and the nurse tells you that your mother is there to pick you up, to go get your backpack, and go to your mother, she does NOT mean to exit the building at the carpool entrance and wait on the street for her. She means to go to the front office. Otherwise, you have to wait for the computer teacher to notice a little girl standing outside unattended and then go running out of the building to catch you before a kidnapper does. That's a good thing to learn.

- that if you sit at a lunch table with only one other girl and she's absent one day, the three boys will scoot over to one side of the table away from you so that they won't be next to your peanut butter sandwich. (You'll also learn how many curse words your father knows when he finds out what happened.)

- that your art teacher only has space on her hallway bulletin board for 50 pictures and there are 150 students in Kindergarten. If your art teacher is busy and doesnt get a chance to rotate the pictures she put up in September, you can ask her in January to include your penguin when she gets a chance. She will promise that YOUR picture will be up there this round. She'll put up new pictures, but your penguin won't be there. You'll cry.

- that if your Gramma has cancer and you're really, really sad that she doesnt visit as much anymore, your mom and your teacher will ask the school counselor to come speak with you. She will promise to come see you and you look forward to your special time with her. You'll wait four months and she still won't come.

- that if someone calls you "Sunshine Dorkus" at school and you ask her to stop, but she just laughs at you, your mother will allow her inner angry black woman to surface and email the teacher, and the little girl will suddenly not be at your table anymore.

- and you'll learn that if your mom had lots of sad things happen to her growing up and can't stomach the same things happening to her baby, she'll make an appt with the principal, have a calm adult conversation about what's fair in life when you're only 6, and you'll end up being a PINK PIG in the school play AND have your picture hanging up on the bulletin board within a few hours. And then your Gramma will stop crying at nights. =)

You know what they say...Everything you need to know about life, you learn in Kindergarten. Good luck, Sunshine!