enigma

A story on the lighter side...

So there I was, teaching sixth grade. My favorite class (not that teachers ever have favorites) had looped up with me from the year before, and we had reached the unit on Medieval history. The students and I had been particularly interested in the plague- but who isn't, really?

At lunchtime one day, I checked my mailbox to find a publication for children called Cobblestone. Featured on the cover: the Bubonic Plague! I rushed back to our classroom to read the article aloud. The students gathered around, leaning in with interest and hoping for a few gruesome deaths. I got to the part where it described how doctors had treated the illness, including enemas. Wait, what??? I rushed on in hopes that no one would ask, but a particularly bright student jumped up to grab a dictionary. I continued on at a feverish pitch, watching my favorite student flipping through pages too efficiently (who taught this kid anyway?). Clearing his throat, the student announced he'd found the word. The class waited breathlessly.

"En-uh-muh. A mystery, something which cannot be solved."

Perfect.