"Super hero"

This week is "reading week" in the Providence public schools. They invite parents to come in and read to their child's class. I happily volunteered to do this, thinking that it would be something Roslyn would really enjoy and remember. So, yesterday I went to the K-2 class and read Mike Mulligan and His Steam Shovel, the book Roslyn requested. It's a lovely story written in 1939 about a man and his steam shovel, which had become obsolete in the face of new technology. After successfully completing a daunting task, Mike Mulligan and his beloved steam shovel, Mary Ann, found themselves stuck in the cellar they had dug for the new town hall of Popperville. Nobody knew how to get them out. And then a little boy had a great idea to turn Mary Ann into the furnace for the new town hall. It's a wonderful example of the go-green mantra "reduce, reuse, recycle." Pretty enlightened for 1939.

I really enjoyed the whole experience of sitting in front of those bright young faces, having them greet me "good morning, Mrs. Adamo," and reading the story. When I picked Roslyn up from school, her teacher handed me a stack of thank-you cards and pictures the kids made for me. One little boy wrote, "Ms. Adamo is a super hero." That, along with the beaming smile on Roslyn's face made my day.