Teachers Convention

As we mentioned a few days ago Maya was off from school Thursday and Friday last week because of teachers convention. Zaheeda said she saw a report on the news how only about half the teachers who are supposed to go to teacher's conference actually do in fact attend the conferences. I was taking the trash out Friday morning when I noticed Kathleen, the next door neighbor who also happens to be a 3rd grade teacher, was raking leaves in the front yard, confirming to me of which half she was accounting. When I was little and Maya's grandparents would skip teachers convention they always went out of our way to not be seen by anyone, as there was a level of shame associated with not fulfilling one's requirements. How brazen to rake leaves right out in front of her house when everyone knows she's supposed to be at teachers convention. The proper thing to do would be to rake the leaves in the back yard where no one would be the wiser - that's how it was done back in the day.... What's the world coming to?