priceless

My first year of public school teaching was with a fifth grade class in Gilbert, AZ. I was on a team with two other teachers, and together we ran the Oceanography Club. The purpose of the club was really for students to go on an overnight trip to San Diego, where they'd take a boat trip and go to Sea World. The meetings were a formality; we asked the students to report on a sea animal and do some fundraising before they could go on the trip. Each week, we'd meet to hear a short report about sea lions or lobsters, the discuss the fundraisers. And after a few months of this, it was time for our trip, which was handled by an organization which implemented the details, down to supervision of the kids at the hotel in San Diego.

I had invited my best friend, Louise, along, and she joined us on the chartered bus ride lasting 6 hours. We had a great two days with our group of students, enjoying the wonderful spring weather on both the boat ride and at Sea World. The highlight for me was sitting close to the tank at the killer whale show and getting SOAKED head to toe. Louise and the students were so cold afterward that they found an open patch of sun-soaked sidewalk and all laid down to absorb the heat (I have a picture of it somewhere around here....)! Time flew by, and before we knew it, we'd arrived home, exhausted but happy.

What really gets me about this whole trip is the conversation I had with my mother the night after our trip. It went a little like this:

SJ: It was so great! We got soaked at the Shamu display, watched a funny sea lion show and rode that polar bear ride. How come we never went there when I was a kid?
Mom: (long pause) Are you serious, Stephie? You don't remember?
SJ: Ummm, no. We didn't go to Sea World. I would have remembered it!
Mom: We went THREE times. Nothing triggered a memory?
SJ: Nope. You're sure it wasn't just the boys?
Mom: I am getting out the pictures right now. There's one of you standing in front of the sign wearing that awful blue sweatsuit with the rainbow trim.
SJ: Huh.
Mom: I can't believe you don't remember any of it. Those trips were expensive!