Sometimes, while I'm waiting 20 years for Lily to go to the bathroom or hug everyone in the universe goodbye or finish looking at a book, I watch the other kids playing and interacting with each other. Sometimes I see things that the teachers don't. Or often times I guess.
On one of my more recent "waitings" I watched one of Lily's friends, C, and another boy pretend fight- I don't think they were even making contact with each other, they were just enacting semi-karate moves in each others general direction, but I was pretty sure it was a time-outable offense anyway.
There were three teachers in the room. One of them was sweeping near where I was standing and the other two were chatting on the other side of the room. None of them were looking at the two boys or any of the other kids sitting on the carpet around them. Which seemed weird to me, and I thought "should I say something?"
But as it went on, I figured they must have seen it.. and were alright with it? Which, I'll be honest, confused me. I can never figure out what is alright at that school and what isn't. When Lily first started going there and wanted to hug a few people when she left, they would tell her not to touch the other kids. Now she hugs pretty much every single person.. and they say nothing.
I stood there watching the two boys and then glanced over to see if Lily was out of the bathroom yet. Nope. But in the few seconds that I looked away, apparently C had pushed the other boy. (Of course they saw that.) C was removed from the situation to be sat in a chair off to the side. The other boy? I'm not sure.. he went to read a book. I almost said something, but didn't.
I looked down at C sitting in the little chair next to me and smiled at him. About half the time I pick up Lily, poor C is sitting in a chair somewhere. The teacher that sentenced him to the chair, said something like "I'm so sad to see you sitting in the chair." He just looked blankly at her, but didn't respond- the look on his sweet little face said it all- "you told me to sit in the chair, so I will do it, and then move on with life. But otherwise, this doesn't mean anything to me."
When Lily was done with the bathroom, we left. Well, she left. I stopped to get her project, first, and then followed her out the door. Most of the kids were outside with one of the teachers. As I held Noah and tried to talk Lily down off one of the toys, one of the kids came up behind me and whipped a wooden swing towards me. It hit in me in the back of the head- I winced and grabbed the back of my head as I turned around.. but whoever had done it was gone. And nothing. No one said anything.
Really? It was hard to miss the swing flying around crazily as I stood there holding my head. It was the type of swing that a 4 or 5 year old could reach their hands up and hang from, so it wouldn't have hit a child, but it is a major stress for me knowing that things happen at school.. and no one even notices.
It's a nice school.. it is.. I get the impression it is, but.. I'm pretty sure this stuff goes on all the time.
I guess I assume that because I have a child that requires me to be beyond hyper-vigilant with, that everyone is the same way with their kids and the kids they are caring for. And that's probably unrealistic. What am I supposed to do? Do I say "oh, excuse me, could you please pay more attention to the children?" I really would rather not say that.. 'cus that wouldn't be an awkward moment at all..
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