Poetry Wednesday, Vol. 96

  Arithmetic


Carl Sandburg






Arithmetic is where numbers fly like pigeons in and  out of your
     head.
Arithmetic tells you how many you lose or win if you know how
     many you had before you lost or won.
Arithmetic is seven eleven all good children go to heaven - or five
     six bundle of sticks.
Arithmetic is numbers you squeeze from your head to your hand
     to your pencil to your paper till you get the answer.
Arithmetic is where the answer is right and everything is nice and
     you can look out of the window and see the blue sky - or the
     answer is wrong and you have to start all over and try again
     and see how it comes out this time.
If you take a number and double it and double it again and then
     double it a few more times, the number gets bigger and bigger
     and goes higher and higher and only arithmetic can tell you
     what the number is when you decide to quit doubling.
Arithmetic is where you have to multiply - and you carry the
     multiplication table in your head and hope you won't lose it.
If you have two animal crackers, one good and one bad, and you
     eat one and a striped zebra with streaks all over him eats the
     other, how many animal crackers will you have if somebody
     offers you five six seven and you say No no no and you say
     Nay nay nay and you say Nix nix nix?
If you ask your mother for one fried egg for breakfast and she
     gives you two fried eggs and you eat both of them, who is
     better in arithmetic, you or your mother?

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We are full into school, and if there girls were pressed to choose their least favorite subject it would be the one above.  We have been plugging away, though.  It helps ever so much that on Thursdays they head over to Miss Mary's house and have a day of Math and Science with two of their dear friends.  Elia told me last week, "you know, I might even like Math!".  There is hope after all.

We have been busy, busy with Abuela.  We hit a museum last week and went apple picking today.  This week will involve apple processing and a whole lot of outdoor fun as we attempt to enjoy some of the last few warm days of the year.  My Mom was unable to be with the kids for their birthdays but this year she sent them each a "Birthday Gram" with the promise of an activity of their choice when she arrived.  Today was Elia's turn and she chose lunch at Tonya's for her birthday treat.  You can see pictures at Mom's.   Mikey's turn will be on Thursday (we are pulling names out of a hat to see who goes when, saves us from arguing).  He wanted Abuela to buy him 30 bags of gummy worms, and as good as an idea as that was, we talked him into doing, rather than buying.  They are going bowling!  And I am jealous, I love bowling!  

Have a lovely fall day, friends.