I’m up and in the detox bath.

I am feeling a bit better than last night, and today is applesauce day. It’s one of my favorite days of the year. If you ask my former students what their favorite lesson was, they might not remember.

But ask them about their favorite memories, and applesauce day always comes up. We can teach a lot through cooking, like measuring, solid to liquid, the five senses, math and counting, sink or float… and the hallway smells pretty darn good.

Kids always seem to try food when they’ve had a hand in cooking it too. I went and got organic apples yesterday so I fee good about what I’m feeding them. It’s going to be great.

Then?

I’ll come home and rest. My friend darla is coming over to present the proceeds from the Kait’s angels yard sale. A reporter from Suffolk Times called me for a follow up, and the poor woman had to hear me cry and break down again. She was the one who called and told me I was the recipient last month as I had no idea. Yesterday she told me the other recipient, Nick Coutts, has decided to give half of his gift over to me. He was in a horrible motorcycle accident and I remember praying so hard for him, but have never met him. He told the reporter he has been reading my

Blog and feels I need it more than him. It broke my heart to hear how someone who is also in a challenging period in their life feels I am worse off than him, as it hit me with the reality that he is right. But it also filled my heart that this young man has come through this challenging period with even more gratefulness and goodness.

Thank you, Nick.

The reporter and I also discussed the pinkwashing of October. I’ve been asked and this weekend I will be writing a guest column for Riverhead Local, as well as get interviewed by the riverhead patch. There is so much education that needs to be done about this month and how pink is not a cure. I’ll have three platforms to spread awareness about the failure of the awareness campaign and how enough is enough. We are all well aware that 116 women and men die ever die from stage four breast cancer. How about we spend money to cure or make it a chronic disease? Even the football teams get in on the act, with pink jerseys and goat yoga. How about every football player and team saves the money on the pink crap and goats and donates 2% to stage four research?

Is it that people want to LOOK like they care and are helping…. or do they REALLY want to make difference?

Reading the email from Donnie shook me a bit that the pain could be the tumor growing, but keep envisioning it is shrinking. Thursday will be a big day, as we will closely look at the tumor markers and pray they drop drastically. I spent the evening on the couch with Kasha the wonder dog, and rob and the kids around me.

I received a sweet email from Quinn’s teacher about what a kind boy he is. Quinn donated a bunch of books to his classroom and felt good doing it. That’s what we need to teach kids. Do good because it feels good and is the right thing… not because you can film it and get acclaim.

Morgan has gotten the theatre bug as well, and came into the car yesterday excited to be holding a script for Frozen. She will be a background actor, sing one or two songs, as well as be stage crew. Something to look forward to at the middle school in December.

Maddie got her camouflage cargo pants and went to a meeting about her ROTC weekend. She is becoming a leader and will train new recruits. We also signed her up for the SAT, and I still can’t believe my little girl is this big.

I’m hoping to have a crafting afternoon tomorrow and make metavivor ribbons and bead bracelets. I want to hand them out at the run and anywhere I go to raise awareness.

Think before you pink.

My life depends on it.

God knew I needed strength yesterday and sent me two people who hugged and hugged me in BJs. I never see these people out, and then there they were, one at checkout and one as I walked out. It’s all in God’s timing when you see someone if you think about it. One stop light… one more minute in an aisle… and you would never cross paths.

We started writing in kindergarten, and that’s a magical time if you can figure it out. I’ve decided to not teach the program, but instead…decided to teach the children. What a difference. We have to meet children where they are and know enough to say… this isn’t working. I think THIS will.

Then?

Watch the magic happen.

It’s beginning to feel a bit like fall, finally. My friend Emilie from Jamesport Greenhouses donated 24 mums for our kindergarten courtyard. I’m hoping to make it into a beautiful place for the kids to play and read and write. She also gave each child a Montauk daisy plant to take home and plant to make a memory with their family. You should have seen my kinders carrying their “Daisy Babies” home on the bus. A true Montauk parade. One mom sent me a video of her little girl telling her that you had to plant it that day and your dreams will come true.

Montauk daisy magic.

That’s what life is all about, if you think about it.

Finding the magic in every day makes even the hardest of moments more bearable.

So today, let’s all find some magic.

Mine will be in the applesauce, the flowers in our courtyard, the love from Darla and her angels that follow her everywhere, and in my heart.

In Jesus’a name, Amen.

Xoxo

Keri