Mikaela“I still don’t understand why I need to know this damn stuff, Miss Springston.” Maddie is twirling her curly brown hair with the ends of her pencil as she chomps down on a piece of gum she won from my purse. She looks up at me, totally uninterested, “It’s just a bunch of dead guys.”
“Yeah, it’s a bunch of dead guys -- a bunch of dead guys who fought for our country.” I hold out my hand in front of her mouth. It’s our signal. The new rule is that for every time she curses, I get to take away the gum. Go five minutes without a bad word uttered, I give her another piece. I even have my phone’s timer set up for it.
“Oh come on, Miss Springston! It’s just ‘damn.’ I’ve said much worse than that!” She throws her arms around her chest in a dramatic pout.
I know she’s heard worse. I have
