Things were bad, but now they are better.

Max and I had some dark days, but the last two were good and there is only one more!  On Monday I was ready to throw in the towel, but on Tuesday the day was much better and the children started looking like children again instead of Gremlins.  In fact, we bobbed for apples yesterday and I can't remember the last time I laughed that hard.  Most of my kids were very timid, but a few dunked their heads all the way to the bottom and came away with several apples a piece.  Italian schools have a "Bidella" who is a cross between a janitor, a ground duty, and a Mom.  I don't know if she was very pleased about the giant mess, but my kids had fun.

Today we had a carnival with bean bag throwing competitions and a tin can knock down game and even a cake walk.  At the end of the day we auctioned off all the prizes left over from the camp including one small bag of little junky plastic instruments.  Bite sized saxophones and almost functional harmonicas.  As we were leaving the school little Matteo ran up to us and gave each of us a little harmonica.  My land.

So this has been very hard, but I don't regret it.  The home stay experience has been wonderful for me and I have gotten out of this exactly what I wanted.  I really wanted to get to know regular Italians and understand more about the way they live and the things they value.  To that end it has been a big fat success.  Not to mention a few recipes I picked up that I'll be trying at home :)

One last bit:  Max has a little waif of a student, Gaia, with long black hair that cries a few times a day when she gets nervous.  She drew the fabulous picture of us in a heart in a giant fuzzy monster if you'll recall.  Anyway,  she gave Max a note today that said the following:

I Invented This Story


The Witch Carlina
Is the most crazy witch, 
She flies night and day with her broom 
what will she do?


She'll do a witchery every now and then. 


But if the naughty witch flies night and day, 
who put a violet in her house?


(Gaia is the little one farther up the slide)