by JoAnn Carter
Tracy beamed. “Honestly, it doesn’t feel like I’ve done much. I’m just enjoying spending time with him.” Tracy held the door open for Amanda as he continued, “It’s as if he’s a butterfly trying to emerge from his cocoon. It’s really neat to see the way his wings are starting to unfold. I thank God we’ve been given the opportunity to see this happening.”
“I know what you mean. That little guy sure has had a lot of hard times in his young life.” A compatible silence fell between them as they sat down.
“Do you think he’ll go on the class field trip we have planned for November? Somewhere I heard the best cure for a hurting heart is to help others.”
“I agree one hundred percent. I’m glad our school board looks favorably on us going to the soup kitchen. The first year they had some questions about it. After the huge success though, they put all their questions aside. It’s been wonderful to see our elementary kids reach out to others. It does something for their self-esteem that nothing else could do.” She unscrewed the cap on her water bottle. “Wait until you see the kids in action. They always make me proud.”
Over the past month and a half, Tracy had found himself more attracted to Amanda every day, even the smallest things like the little dimple on her right cheek and the soft look that came into her eyes when she spoke to the children. She was not only beautiful on the outside. Her inner beauty drew him.
Cautiously, he said, “I know I already have something to be thankful for that day.”
Amanda looked up from her papers again to focus on what he was saying. “Oh, and what’s that?”
He looked intently into her hazel eyes and whispered, “I’ll get to spend it with you.”
“Tracy…I…ahh…”
Carolyn breezed into the doorway. “Hey guys, want to go out for a treat after school? It’s on me.”
“Sure, that sounds great.” Turning toward Amanda, Tracy saw her trying to reach the sleeve of the sweater. He reached for the arm to help her into it. His fingers brushed her neck as he pulled her sweater up. A tingle went up his arm before she stepped away. Amanda’s eyes grew round and he could tell by the look on her face, she felt something, too.
Amanda turned to Carolyn and said in a rush, “I think I’ll take a rain check, Carolyn. I want to get home early tonight.”
“That’s okay.” Giving Tracy a cheeky grin, Carolyn added, “We’ll have a good time anyway.”
Tracy felt like groaning. Of all the times for Carolyn to flirt!
Amanda quickly walked to the doorway and called back, “I’ll be back in a while. I wanted to see Janice for a minute.” With that she took off down the hall as if she were on a mission.
****
After their treat, Carolyn and Tracy met Amanda at the church for the college and career group meeting. When the Bible Study was over, Ben caught up with Amanda and Carolyn as everyone began to leave. “Amanda, can I talk to you for a minute?”
“Sure.” She turned to Carolyn. “I’ll catch up with you later.”
“Sounds good,” Carolyn said before opening the door to the hallway. “Have a nice night, Ben.”
“Thanks. You, too.”
Amanda smiled as Ben turned toward her. “That was a great study tonight.”
Ben nodded. “I enjoyed it, too.”
“So, what’s up?”
He grabbed his Bible and the clipboard that held his notes from the Bible Study. “I was updating our College and Career’s calendar during my lunch break at work and I realized Tracy’s birthday is on Friday.”
Amanda hit her forehead with the palm of her hand. “That’s right. I noticed it on a calendar in the teacher’s staff room, but it totally slipped my mind.”
“If I’d known, we could’ve had a cake for him tonight.”
“I won’t worry about it.” Amanda reassured him, “Tracy hasn’t been here long enough to know that we usually celebrate the birthdays on the Bible Study night closest to the day.”
“True, but I had a thought anyway. What would you think about our group giving him a little surprise party at my house Friday night? It would give him the opportunity to get to know us some more in a little more informal setting.”
“That sounds good. Can you pull something like that off so quickly? It’s only two days away. I’m sure next week would be fine.”
“I know, but I kind-of wanted to do something special. I don’t see why my idea wouldn’t work. That’s as long as Tracy accepts my invitation.”
Amanda chuckled, “I don’t think that will be a problem. He loves to be around people.”
“Good. When I was talking to him earlier, I mentioned wanting to have him over to my place sometime soon. He seemed pretty receptive.”
Amanda picked up her purse. “Umm, I think Mike’s trying to give us a subtle hint.”
Ben looked around and found Mike standing by the light switch. “I think you’re right.” He called over to Mike, “Sorry to hold you up, buddy.”
“No problem,” he hollered back.
“Can I walk you to your car?” Ben asked as they made their way to the door.
“Sure.”
As they walked Ben continued on the previous conversation. “If he does agree to come over, I’ll start the phone chain to invite whoever can come on such short notice to be at my place by seven.”
“That sounds like fun. Will you call me and let me know what’s happening either way and what I can do to help?”
“Sure thing,” Ben said.
****
Tracy stood at the door with his mouth wide open as the group called out, “Surprise!”
“What?” Dumbfounded, he asked, “This is Bible Study, right?”
Ben chuckled and took his arm, pulling him into the house. “Happy birthday, man! Glad you could make your party .”
Tracy looked around the room. His eyes rested momentarily on Amanda before he asked, “How did you guys know?”
Ben mysteriously replied, “I have my ways.”
Tracy chuckled, “All I can say is...wow. And thanks.” People clapped him on his back as he passed through the room.
Someone called out, “You can put the tunes on now. This is a party after all...”
Ben called over all the commotion to Tracy, “My pad isn’t a palace but it’s comfortable. Here let me show you around.”
“Great place.” Tracy looked around impressed at how well the condo suited Ben’s personality.
As they neared the kitchen, Ben offered, “Can I get you a soda?”
“That would be great.”
“What kind would you like?”
“Do you have any root beer?”
“Sure do. That’s a favorite of mine.” Ben reached for a can in the refrigerator and handed it to Tracy.
Tracy popped the lid as Amanda’s soft voice sounded behind him. “Happy Birthday, Tracy.”
Tracy turned. She looked as beautiful as ever. Her cheeks matched the soft pink of her sweater. “Thanks. I don’t know if I’ve ever been more surprised.”
Amanda waved her hand toward Ben. “All the credit goes to Ben. He’s the organized one with the calendar.”
Someone yelled for Ben from the living room. “Would you excuse me for a minute? Duty calls. Make yourself at home, Tracy.”
“Will do.” Turning to Amanda, he admitted, “I feel a little overwhelmed by the thoughtfulness of this group. They hardly even know me...”
Amanda leaned against the doorframe. “That was one of the reasons Ben wanted you to have this special evening.”
Tracy glanced over her shoulder. “How many people do you think are here?”
“I don’t know.” Amanda followed his gaze. “Probably twenty or so.”
Tracy nodded his head in disbelief as he took a sip of his soda. “Wait until I tell my family.” He narrowed his eyes. “You didn’t say a thing at school today.”
“Of course not.”
“I didn’t think you even knew it was my birthday.”
A
manda tucked her hair behind her ear. “Ben told me this week. If it hadn’t been for him, I’m sure I would have forgotten. Why didn’t you say anything?”
“I didn’t want you to think I was fishing for a gift.”
“Ah ha.”
Carolyn came to the kitchen door. “Gee, Amanda, let Tracy out of the kitchen. Everyone’s waiting for you two.”
Amanda looked back over her shoulder. Sure enough, Ben called out, “Come on. We’re going to play charades.”
“Oops.” Amanda bit her lower lip. “Looks like I’m holding up the guest of honor.”
Tracy winked. “I’ll let it slide this time.”
****
Amanda opened a window while the children sat waiting for her, circled around the easel. “Sam, could you come over here for a moment, please?”
Sam jumped up and walked over to her.
Looking closely at him, she asked, “What do you smell?”
“Smell?” He sniffed the air, “I don’t smell nothin`.”
“Anything.” She gently reminded him. “Put your face closer to the window and close your eyes. What do you smell?”
Sam furrowed his brow in confusion, but he did as he was told. “Take a deep breath, Sam.” He obediently did so.
Suddenly, his face registered understanding. “It smells like leaves.”
Amanda smiled, “Good job! Do you know what month it is?”
“Halloween month.”
“Yes, Halloween is in this month, but there is a name for it. Do you remember?”
Looking around the room for some type of clue, his eyes focused on the large calendar on the chalkboard. “October!” he proudly announced.
“Nice work, Sam. It’s October and the season is fall, or another name for it is autumn.” Gently placing her hand on Sam’s shoulder, she said, “Thank you. You may be seated.” She looked back to the circle and called, “Abigail, would you please come to the window.”
Abigail pushed her glasses up on her nose and joined Amanda.
“I would like you to look out the window and tell us what you see.”
Abigail’s eyes roamed over the playground taking in all the sights. “I see leaves dance!”
“Do you know what is making them dance?” Amanda asked as she bent down and took the little girl’s hand.
“No, there is no music.” Abigail replied with wide eyes.
“There’s not? Listen…”
A gust of crisp autumn breeze swirled by, blowing leaves in its wake.
“The wind!” She proudly announced.
Amanda hugged her. “You are right. Come on, let’s join the circle.” While walking, she said, “Next month is November. Does anyone know what holiday we celebrate then?”
The children looked blankly at her. Tracy tried giving a clue. “It’s the month we get to talk about pilgrims and Indians.”
Allie’s hand shot up. “Oh, oh, oh…”
Amanda smiled, “Yes, Allie…”
“Thanksgiving.”
“That’s right. Thanksgiving is one of my favorite holidays…and do you know what?” The children leaned forward in eager expectancy. “We are going to start decorating our classroom today and we will also be starting on a special project for our Thanksgiving celebration.”
“But it’s not even November yet.”
“Please remember to raise your hand, Tommy,” she gently admonished him. “You are absolutely right. It’s not November yet but we have a lot to do. So, if we do a little bit every day, it will be done by the time we need it.”
Hands shot into the air and Amanda looked into Tracy’s laughing eyes. She continued, “I know you have a lot of questions, but before you ask them, let me tell you about our project. Mr. Atkins, will you help me?”
“I’d be more than happy to.” All eyes turned to him. “Who can tell me why we celebrate Thanksgiving?”
Maura raised her hand and began to speak as Tracy nodded his head. “It’s ‘cause the Indians and pilgrims became friends and helped each other.”
“Good job.” Tracy praised. “Not only did they help one another, but they brought gifts for each other so everyone could share a wonderful meal.” Shifting his long legs to get a little more comfortable, he continued. “Do you think that was a good idea?”
The children’s heads bobbed up and down. Emily raised her hand.
“Yes, Emily?”
“Can we make some gifts?”
Tracy chuckled. “Well, that’s a great idea. Not to mention, it’s just what Miss Manning was going to tell you about.”
Emily gleefully clasped her hand over her mouth while Amanda took over for Tracy. “We are going to make gifts and then we are going to do something special with them.”
“What can I make?” Emily blurted out.
“Well, I was hoping all of you could give us some ideas of what you would like to make, but before…” Everyone started talking at once. Clapping her hands three times, she waited for their response of three claps back. “Please hold on to those great ideas for a minute while I tell you about our class trip to the soup kitchen. That’s where we’ll be giving our gifts away.”
Teacher's Plans
Teacher's Plans
Chapter Six
November
“Class, you are doing a wonderful job. These turkey bookmarks look professionally done, not to mention the wreaths you made from your handprints in all these beautiful fall colors.” Amanda said as they were cleaning up.
“This is so much fun!” Fred called out from his place around the worktable.
“I think so, too. Speaking of fun, I have another opportunity for you. Is anyone willing to go to the kitchen the Monday before Thanksgiving and help set-up decorations? If so, please stay for just a minute before going to the bus lobby.” The dismissal bell rang. “That’s it for today, gang.” Giving them a bright smile, she added, “I’ll see you all tomorrow.”
Joey hung back after class along with Sam, Fred, and Allie. Amanda walked up to Joey and said for his ears only, “Joey, I’m proud of you.” She gathered the other three around and gave them the details of the project. She thanked them and passed out special permission slips with a note to be signed by their parents and returned tomorrow.
As the children were leaving, she glanced at Tracy who was cleaning the boards. “Tracy, were you planning on coming with us to the kitchen to decorate?”
Tracy put down the eraser and walked over to her. “Yes, I am. Was there something specific you wanted me to do?”
“No,” softly, she added, “but I’m glad you’ll be coming with us.” Amanda turned off the lights and went over to pick up her briefcase. “I’ll see you tomorrow, bright-eyed and bushy-tailed.”
Tracy nonchalantly asked, “Say, after we bring the kids back to school on that Monday, it will be nearly supper time. Would you care to get a bite to eat with me?”
Amanda’s heart jolted. Her hands became moist as she clenched and then unclenched her fist. “Tracy, you’re a really nice guy, but…”
Tracy, quickly catching on, interrupted her. “Oh boy, I think this is a brush-off.” She could tell he was trying to make it look like it didn’t bother him. “That’s okay, I’ll try another time. I’m pretty hardheaded as you’ll soon find out, if you haven’t already.”
“Just for the record, Tracy. It’s nothing against you. In fact, I really like you. It’s just that I’ve seen firsthand some of the difficulties that can arise when co-workers date.” Looking a little uncomfortable, she continued, “I value our friendship too much to risk anything more.”
“Normally,” Tracy, looking distracted, said, “I would agree with the thought not to date a co-worker.” He shifted his weight from one hip to the other. “I value our friendship as well, but I can’t say I wouldn’t be willing to take a risk where you are concerned.”
A few minutes went by before finally, Tracy gathered up his things and looked at Amanda again, giving her an award-winning smile. “Well, that about w
raps it up for today. See you tomorrow.” With that he gave her a little salute and walked out the door.
Amanda sunk into her desk chair. Whew, Lord. She let her prayer out with a sigh . That was harder than I thought it would be. Thinking to herself for a moment she came to the conclusion, But, if it is Your will that I date, a man like Tracy seems pretty nice. It’s just that You and I both know it’s impossible to date one’s assistant. Feeling like the issue was settled, she left the classroom, too.