The Charge of the Light Brigade

Please enjoy the following poem (which has always been one of my favorites). I happened to be discussing it with someone the other day and thought it would be an excellent addition to the blog.

Half a league, half a league,
Half a league onward,
All in the valley of Death
Rode the six hundred.
"Forward, the Light Brigade!
"Charge for the guns!" he said:
Into the valley of Death
Rode the six hundred.

"Forward, the Light Brigade!"
Was there a man dismay'd?
Not tho' the soldier knew
Someone had blunder'd:
Their's not to make reply,
Their's not to reason why,
Their's but to do and die:
Into the valley of Death
Rode the six hundred.

Cannon to right of them,
Cannon to left of them,
Cannon in front of them
Volley'd and thunder'd;
Storm'd at with shot and shell,
Boldly they rode and well,
Into the jaws of Death,
Into the mouth of Hell
Rode the six hundred.

Flash'd all their sabres bare,
Flash'd as they turn'd in air,
Sabring the gunners there,
Charging an army, while
All the world wonder'd:
Plunged in the battery-smoke
Right thro' the line they broke;
Cossack and Russian
Reel'd from the sabre stroke
Shatter'd and sunder'd.
Then they rode back, but not
Not the six hundred.

Cannon to right of them,
Cannon to left of them,
Cannon behind them
Volley'd and thunder'd;
Storm'd at with shot and shell,
While horse and hero fell,
They that had fought so well
Came thro' the jaws of Death
Back from the mouth of Hell,
All that was left of them,
Left of six hundred.

When can their glory fade?
O the wild charge they made!
All the world wondered.
Honor the charge they made,
Honor the Light Brigade,
Noble six hundred.

Copied from Poems of Alfred Tennyson,
J. E. Tilton and Company, Boston, 1870

Eyewitness

Today I had to go to court. I was a witness in a case against a parent of a former student at my school. The parent had come up to the school in December because she was upset with how a situation was handled with her daughter. She ended up having to be handcuffed and taken out of the school by police officers. She was charged with disorderly conduct, resisting arrest, and several other charges.

It was definitely interesting to see the legal system at work. The questions that both the prosecuting attorney and the defense attorney asked were basically the same. The way in which they were spun, though, was very different. For the most part, the prosecuting attorney simply asked me who, what, where questions. The defense attorney tried to ask several leading questions in which I had to answer very carefully.

One question in particular was asked about why the parent had come up to the school on that day. I was asked, "Did Ms. Allen ask you to leave a copy of the information regarding student searches in the office so that she could pick one up?" I answered yes because the parent did tell me that she would like a copy of this information provided to her. The next question was, "Why was there not a copy of this information left for her in the main office?" I made sure that I responded that multiple copies of that information is always in the office, but I personally handed a copy to her myself. Several following questions from the defense attorney continued to try to make the issue the fact that the parent was provided the information in my office rather than the main office. Needless to say, I felt that I needed to remain alert and answer each and every question strategically so as not to be backed into a corner.

The other interesting part of my experience involved me using profanity with the judge. Now, before you get the wrong idea let me explain that I again was clarifying some information pertaining to this incident. I had to repeat to the judge the various obscene and vulgar statements that were made to me by this parent and another individual that was with her. I am fairly certain that I am one of the few people who have ever made any of these comments directly to this judge in court and been dismissed with no reprimand. Let's just say that if I had to say these same things to my mother I would definitely blush.

So, that was a taste of my first experience testifying in a court of law. Oh... the defendant was found guilty. The sentencing was set for a later date. I was told by the prosecuting attorney afterward that this was done because he is asking for some jail time in this case. Because the defendant had 22 prior charges on her record (some of which include disorderly conduct) the judge was going to review her file before handing down a sentence.

Stranger Than Fiction

I am not sure how this post will turn out. This week I had, as far as I can tell, the most surreal experience of my life thus far. I was made aware of some details of a police investigation that were straight out of a box-office thriller. Because this is an ongoing investigation I cannot really reveal any details at this time.

What I can tell you is this. I not only personally know the individual that allegedly was in the processing of committing some heinous crimes, but I also personally know at least several of the intended victims. That is what makes this whole situation stranger than fiction.

I have always said that one day I will write a book accounting the varied experiences I have had in the field of education. This will definitely be included. In fact, this may span several chapters in that book.

Since I can say no more regarding this strange and scary situation I will bring this post to a close. But, watch your local theater for a psychological thriller based upon a screenplay yet to be written.

Hats Off!

This week was spring break for me, so my wife picked up some extra hours at her job. That meant that I spent the whole week home with my two kids. I just have to say, "Hats off to my wife and all other stay at home moms."

Don't get me wrong. I loved spending time with my kids. We got to play and do things that I usually don't get to do with them. Yet, I do have to say that I was completely worn out at the end of each day.

Just trying to get out of the house was a feat in itself. I had to time everything just right. I had to strategically shower while the two kids were occupied doing something else. I then had to coordinate getting them both dressed, diaper bag packed, meals eaten, etc. There was a lot of analytical thinking that goes into that type of production. In fact, if someone would take the time to diagram the process on paper it might look like something you could find in a biochemistry textbook. (see diagram)

I have discovered that there is both an art and a science to wrangling children all by yourself. The science aspect deals with thinking through your game plan and developing an efficient flow of events. The art is getting a feel for the proper timing and knowing what motivational factors will be effective in keeping the troops moving and on schedule. Trust me, if you say, "Time to use the restroom," but the proper directive should have been, "You need to use the potty," then you spend an extra five minutes just overcoming that one obstacle. Even your phrasing needs to be intentional and on point. Losing five minutes at the wrong point along the chain of events could actually end up costing you twenty minutes!

The other daily event that requires the precision and dedication of a master orchestra conductor is in putting the kids down for a nap. The goal is to have both of them go down at the same time so that you actually have 5-45 minutes to do something that you would like to do -- like use the restroom yourself! I have found that getting them to lay down and fall asleep at all is an accomplishment. Getting it to happen for both at the same time is akin to a miracle. I am happy to report that I was successful in this endeavor more than once this week (though not every time).

Well, Sofia now wants dessert and Christopher is screaming for some yet-to-be-determined reason. My 4 minutes of allotted freedom is up.