Ten.One Thousand, Six Hundred & Seventy-Eight

1. The sound of the wind blowing through the trees.

2. Another napkin-filter.

3. To coffee, or not too coffee?

4. Darn that labdanum.

5. Actually, I think I like these in-person meetings.

6. I need the time to switch gears.

7. She starts to cry. I knew the tears were coming. “I have been in education 36 years and I have cried in a meeting twice and both…” “…what you’re not going to do is blame me for your…no we are not…”

8. But I don’t trust you.

9. But it’s not my responsibility to make you comfortable.

10. I tell him that I think she’s full of shit.

11. I feel bad. Like maybe I put him in an uncomfortable position. That was not the intention.

12. This one-on-one was exactly what I needed.

13. I tell her that she was crying and she shouldn’t be and now I feel like crying. Because this is emotionally draining.

14. Thank goodness I brought my whistle.