Part One
Part Two
Part Three


Our rocking chair session left both of us in tears, more than once. Julie, our foreign exchange student, crept out of her room upstairs and looked over the railing, trying to discern what was happening and if she should intervene. I was in so much pain over my daughter’s pain I was unable to respond to Julie. Eventually Beth settled down, and took herself to bed… my bed.


The next morning, she was business as usual. She seemed emotionally quite fine. I was relieved. I wasn’t so resilient… I was still reeling from the emotional experience of the previous night.


One of the many things we had discussed was how Beth was having difficulty finding a good friend or two at school. There is a girl in our new neighborhood that plays well with Beth, but at recess she prefers more sedentary pursuits, and hangs out with another good friend who has similar interests. I told Beth I would play with her that day at recess. I hurriedly left after Bible study that morning and bolted to Target to purchase a jump rope, and then off to McDonald’s for a chicken nugget Happy Meal. I met my darlin’ at school for lunch, and she was a happy camper. During lunchtime, we tentatively planned a play date with a girl in Beth’s class who had called a few days ago wanting to get together.


The jump rope was a big hit. As the whistle blew signaling the end of recess, Beth gave me a big hug. She said, “That’s quite a show you put on there, mom.”


After she returned to class, I headed in to see the principal. I described the adult Beth had spoken to the day before, after receiving a racial comment. The principal responded immediately. We retrieved Beth from class, and headed to the principal’s office to talk. We never figured out the name of the child who made the comment, but the principal thought she knew the identity of the teacher.

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