Veronica Thompson
Stories (16/0)
Body- Please Forgive Me
For years, I've had a love-hate relationship with my body. I would say there was too much here, not enough there; my body was the bain of my existence. No one abused my body as much or more than I did. I would curse it, vocally express how much I hated it because of how unappealing I thought it to be. Today, I would like to extend a formal apology to my wonderful shell that has sustained me for four decades. My wonderful body that has continued to keep me alive despite all of the abuse and neglect that I have inflicted upon it. Please accept my apology for telling you how much I hated you, while you worked overtime to keep my heart pumping and the blood flowing through my veins despite me fueling you with all of the things that were no good for you. Thank you for keeping me limber and strong despite the fact that I don't give you the proper rest, exercise, and nutrients that you need to flourish. Despite the years of abusing you and verbally expressing my disdain for you, you have continued to show me love, care, and consistency. Body, please forgive me for not appreciating all that you have done for me under the conditions that I have put you under.
By Veronica Thompson3 years ago in Poets
The Battling Sisters
The Battling Sisters If memory serves me right, there were eight of them. Ms. Katherine had eight children, six boys and two girls. For the most part they were a relatively quiet family. They never bothered anyone; they mostly came and went about their business. I lived right below them for fifteen years and they never made much noise, yes they were a quiet family. They didn’t have much as far a material items may go, but they loved each other and to be honest, especially today, that is more valuable than any material or monetary wealth. Oh, my apologies, I was talking about Ms. Katherine’s eight children, sometimes I get easily throwed off mid-sentence, if I do it again, please don’t be ashamed to redirect me.
By Veronica Thompson3 years ago in Families
She Killed Herself With Kindness
She had a tendency to always look on the bright side. She, if you will, viewed the world through rose colored lenses. If it was not “positive” or “uplifting”, she wanted nothing to do with it, she did not want to hear it or see it. If you could not say something nice, then you should not say anything at all – that was her simple philosophy. This is the way that she lived her life and the way that she believed others should live their lives, so much so that she would not socialize or associate with anything or anyone who ever even thought to speak a negative word.
By Veronica Thompson4 years ago in Humans
Unpacking Our Students' Emotional Baggage for Success and High Standards
I am unapologetically an introvert by nature. I require a significant amount of quiet/alone time in order to perform at my peak. I am non-confrontational and often let things go unaddressed as I typically do not wish to “disrupt the peace”. I give you this background information to give you an idea of how significant the situation in this paper is to my heart as an educator, more specifically an educator who has first- hand knowledge of poverty as I come from it and by many standards I am still living in it.
By Veronica Thompson4 years ago in Education
In Hope Not Denial
In the State of New York, children between the ages of three and five years who qualify for special education services receive their services and support through The Department of Education’s Committee on Preschool Special Education. Often times children who have been identified as having special needs that warrant the support of a related service provider(s), and or the support of a special education teacher (be it in a center based preschool special education program or the support of an itinerant teacher who provides special education support in the home or a general education program), preschool is the first time in which they may have been identified as having a need warranting support. Other times, children who receive special education services and support through the Committee on Preschool Education have had services through the Early Intervention program that provides education and related services to children suspected of having or who have been diagnosed with a special need between the ages of birth and age three.
By Veronica Thompson4 years ago in Education
Race and Education
Wake Up Call “America is becoming more and more racially, linguistically, and culturally diverse, the teacher corps is becoming less and less so. This ‘demographic divide’ as Gay and Howard call it is troubling because more and more students of color are less likely to be taught by teachers familiar to their home cultures and language. Further, they are more likely to be taught by mono-lingual teachers from dominant cultures, who along with their lesson plans bring, often bring misperceptions about race and culture” (Dickar, 2008 pg. 116). Does teacher race and culture greatly influence the quality of education provided to students? One might think that a Black teacher may be more effective with Black students and families because they “understand” the needs and the struggles often associated with Black people. My experiences challenge this idea.
By Veronica Thompson4 years ago in Education
From Early Intervention to Preschool Special Education
If you are the parent/guardian of a child (birth to three years) currently receiving special education/therapy through The Early Intervention program, please ensure that you begin the Turning Three process with The New York City Department of Education Committee on Preschool Education (CPSE) at least four months prior to your baby's third birth. The day after your child's third birthday, they are no longer eligible to receive services through Early Intervention.
By Veronica Thompson4 years ago in Families
Concrete Rose
Did you think that the rose that grew from concrete would arrive free of abrasions, battle scars and thorns? Is it fair to judge the beauty and worth of this rare rose against the softness and beauty of the roses grown in the care of a well maintained garden? Each thorn, scar and abrasion found on the petals and stem of the concrete grown rose tells a story, a story of strength, a story of survival, a story of resilience, the story of a will to exist even when all odds were against it. The rose from concrete may on first sight seem difficult to love as it does not fit into the bouquet of twelve with the aesthetically pleasing roses from the well maintained garden, so its existence lacks value from a superficial outlook. But when given the time, care, love and appropriate nurture, this special rose will flourish and survive any and all storms that it faces while the garden grown rose succumbs to conditions not conducive to its survival. The rose from concrete may prick your finger and bruise your eye from its appearance, but the love that it gives and the growth that will occur when a gentle soul views its scars as a sign of strength and resilience as being just as valuable as the aesthetics of the well- maintained garden rose will be unlike any other love one has ever known. As teachers we must nurture and see the wonder in all of our students and keep our eyes open for those little roses that are growing through concrete. Those little roses that make us work a little harder, those roses that seem resistant to affection, those roses that are screaming to be loved through actions contradicting their needs. Love all of your little roses whether garden or concrete grown
By Veronica Thompson4 years ago in Poets