You know it's May when...

During the past 24 days, I have found myself frequently remarking, "It must be May." If you have kids or know kids or are in any way connected to the education field, you know that May is a crazy month. And the sheer volume of activities/field trips/games/parties/programs/recitals/graduations/[insert other activities I am forgetting] may very well make you feel like you are going to lose your mind. Thank you to my friends who added to my list of reasons for how we know it's May... even if we are generally uncertain about what day of the week it is.

You know it must be May when...

• Armloads of paper are being thrown away.
• Your to-do list is longer than your daily lesson plans.
• Students say things like, "You're not going to grade this anyway," and "We don't have any more recesses or lunches this year," implying "Why should I bother trying?" and "I can act however I want." 
• You suddenly become like an absent-minded professor, calling kids the wrong names, regularly losing your train of thought and forgetting what you were going to say, and repeatedly getting confused about what day it is. 
• You have random strips and patches of red skin, thanks to wearing a t-shirt and sneakers on field day (which finally took place the last week of school, despite being rescheduled twice due to rain). 
• You find yourself saying things like, "A screwdriver is not a good toy for the bus," and, "You know you do not climb on top of each other!"
• You allow yourself to have pointless arguments with students about whether you should try to sell items new at a yard sale to get more money or make new items look used because people are looking for cheap deals. 
• You stop making the healthy breakfast smoothies you made for 170 days of the school year because, among other things, you're tired of washing the blender. So instead you grab an over-ripe banana or a stick of cheese on your way out the door. (Not to mention the sparse lunch you packed, because who has motivation for packing decent lunches in May?)
• You contemplate going to bed at 6:30, but you have way too many things to do. And when you do finally fall into bed exhausted, you can’t fall asleep, because there are too many tabs open in the browser that is your brain, and like Windows, your mind refuses to shut down until all programs are properly closed. So you lie awake past midnight thinking about all there is to do in the last few days of school.
• You feel an odd combination of angst and sappiness. While you are ready for summer vacation, you aren't quite ready to say good-bye to the precious ones with whom you've spent 180 days. 

Somehow the last day of school always sneaks up on me. All of a sudden, here we are, and tomorrow will be the last day my third graders enter my room as third graders. June is coming - a mere week away! But in the meantime, let's do our best to be present in each and every moment that is a gift from God.