little horsey

i'm not sure if i've spelled it out before, but i teach psychology at a nearby university. this semester has been a strange one, as i've only had one class so far. that's left me with a good amount of time for creative works.

starting tomorrow i'll be taking over two sections of another class, and adding another 114 students to my grade book. the professor of those classes is ready to have her baby. (it's a girl. she'll be arriving any minute...)

i have 51 students in my other class, so this brings me to a total of 165. that's a lot of names to remember. not that i'm under any obligation to remember them all. it's just much nicer and warmer when i can call at least some of them by name.

speaking of names...

my little girl (2 1/2 years old) has recently been insisting that we call her "little horsey." she'll gently correct us if we use any other name. "could you put your brush away, sweetie?" i'd say. "could you put your brush away, little horsey?" she'd correct me. she's already a kind and gentle teacher.

she's now adding "horsey" to the name of people that mean something to her. uncle byron horsey brings her candy. mommy horsey takes her for a walk. daddy horsey reads her a story. grammy horsey fixes her a snack.

the other day something startled her. she jumped into my arms saying "little horsey's scared!" i said "don't worry little horsey. you'll be all right. do you know who's gonna protect you?"

"grammy horsey?" she offered.

"well, yes, grammy horsey will protect you, but i was thinking more along the lines of God," i said.

"grammy horsey and God horsey will protect you," she declared.

"that's right, honey," i said, giggling.

"that's right, little horsey."

"oh, of course. sorry."