27 More Days (Slice #4 - Eat Fast)

Schools provide the opportunity for both students and teachers to learn many valuable lessons.   Lessons may include new information about certain academic subjects, organization, social and emotional skills, and even character development.  One particularly beneficial lesson I have learned over the course of my teaching career is to “Eat fast!”

Eat fast in the morning!  Each morning as I am rushing out the door, I throw my breakfast sandwich into the microwave for precisely 1 minute and 35 seconds at 30% power, then 65 seconds at 100%.  I let it rest for one additional minute, grab it from the microwave, then bite, chew, and swallow repeatedly on my drive to work.  Sometimes, I do not even taste it.

Eat fast at lunch!  If I am lucky, I get a full 18 minutes to consume my lunch once I have walked my class to the lunchroom, pulled my lunch out of the refrigerator or cabinet, and made any necessary preparations.  If I should happen to have recess duty or if a student needs my assistance on a math problem, I may have all of 3 minutes to devour my food.  Often, I do not even remember what I have eaten.

Eat fast at dinner!  Since I eat lunch at 10:55 am and do not usually get home until 6 or 7 pm, I am typically ravenous by dinnertime!  Once my food is prepared and plated, I shovel through the contents as if they were part of my very last meal on Earth.  Most nights, I have to remember to breathe between bites.

I eat fast – not by choice, but out of necessity.

This morning has been a quite unusual morning, though.  With snow falling rapidly outside, I decided to skip my typical breakfast sandwich routine in order to have both hands on the wheel as I drove.  I placed the frozen sandwich in my purse, with the expectation that I would prepare it as soon as I arrived at school.  Much to my surprise, however, I received a phone call five minutes before I pulled into the parking lot informing me that school had, in fact, been cancelled. 

I was frustrated, to put it mildly.

Just to be safe, I decided to drive home via the main roads instead of the back roads I usually travel.  Driving down Main Street, I noticed a little brunch restaurant ahead.  Before I even realized what was happening, my car was in the parking lot.  I thought to myself, “I’ll just grab a quick bite to eat and then head home before the weather gets worse.”  I placed my order, poured a cup of coffee, and sat down at a counter facing the window.  With my very first sip of the warm, delicious brew, something strange happened.  My shoulders relaxed.  My heartbeat slowed.  My breathing calmed.  I was lost in the beauty of the falling snow when the waiter finally brought my food.  Steam rose from the giant breakfast burrito and smells of peppers and cilantro filled my nose.  I pierced my fork into a pillow of eggs and took my first bite.  The spicy hot sauce lit fire to the tip of my tongue but then was immediately cooled by creamy avocado.  I chewed.  I swallowed.  I waited.  And then, only when I was ready, I took a bite again. 

Over an hour later, I finally drank my last sip of coffee.  I smiled and thanked the waiter, put on my coat, and headed back outside into the freezing cold winter.  When the bitter winds and icy flakes assaulted my cheeks, I could not even feel them.  This simple meal had warmed my soul.

I learned a new lesson today:  “Eat slow…whenever you can.”

______________________________________________________________

*Miss Collins, if 3xy = 150 and y is twice the value of x, what is the value of y?

y = _______