SLICE #31/31- A RECAP

Slice #31!

I did it!

Jumped off the high dive!
Touched the bottom at the twelve foot mark!

Swam all the way across the deep end!

Wrote 31 days in a row!
Woot! Woot! Woot!

My slices this year seemed to divide into several categories.
First, and maybe most important,
were the "How We Became a Family Slices."
I started writing those
after several other posters
wrote memories of days that they had babies
and then a few folks picked up on that theme
and wrote about their gotcha days.
My oldest son is graduating this year
(At least I hope he is, please keep him in your prayers!)
And I thought it would be kind of special
to write a book of slices
to give to him
as a graduation present.
He's come so far…

There were a few other family slices
One about the kindness of a stranger

who unknowingly bought us pizza for my birthday

One about Isaiah unloading groceries

Then finally a slice about our typical day

Which is not nearly as pleasant

As what some readers

seem to think. 

Next there was the "me as a teacher" category.
I did some classroom slices.
Two about the process of saying goodbye to my students,
One "character" sketch
One about the John Henry craze that has overtaken my classroom,
One about running into a former student at the post office,
(I ran into another student from that same group at a shopping center today).
Three about my job hunt
and it's eventual end (phew!)
And my favorite, about the time one of our students who has autism
rubbed the principal's head.


Then there were a few kind of miscellaneous slices
One about lessons from cooking class
(my book club friends decided that we had had  so much fun at the last one
that we should do it again in May!)
Two of my Sunday posts had to do with church and the Sabbath
 (it was interesting that I had a really similar Sabbath post last year,

it made me wonder why that crazy busi-ness is always such a theme in my life)
and one about a peanut butter sandwich message given by my pastor
that I am still thinking about pretty much every day.
I wrote two posts about my "family of origin"
 one about my sister's wedding,
and one about how my grandmother shaped me as a reader.
And then I wrote two slices about my venture into March Poetry Madness-
one a set of really bad limericks
and one about my process of trying to write a poem
which lost in the first round!
And then there was, of course, a poem about my dogs. 

I loved slicing
as much,
or maybe more
than I did last year.
I loved reconnecting with slicers
I had "met" last March
then followed on Tuesdays
throughout the year.
I loved making new friends
from all over the world.
I loved seeing all the different formats people tried
prose, lists, poems, acrostics, limericks, plays, photo essays.
I loved, loved, loved
reading comments that people made about my writing.
And I made a super conscious effort
to comment on other people's writing.
Most days I think I did at least ten
Although I didn't really keep count.

I spent some time last night
reading last year's slices.
And I really think I was writing better-
more details, better dialogue-
last year than I am now.
I wonder why---
maybe just too much on my mind-
son issues, graduation issues, job issues.

But at least I did it.
I sliced
for 31 days
in a row!

A huge thank you to Ruth and Stacey for pulling
the Slice of Life
Writing Community together!