By Joy Fredericks, ITRT at C.M. Bradley Elementary
C.M. Bradley’s Trunk or Treat on Friday was a sight to behold. The kids and their parents were out in force in a who’s who of the tiny and sticky. Normally quiet students came alive as they dragged tired parents from car to car, giggling and asking for treats. The costumes were on point. I saw an entire family of Mandalorians, more Marvel superheroes than I could count, and Cindy Martin’s granddaughter was so sweet in her ladybug costume that I definitely got a cavity! Ms. Froehlich was parked next to me – with Piggy, Gerald, the Pigeon, and the rest of the Mo Willems crew. Mrs. Hanlon handed out books, and Mrs. Eldridge was there in costume with her entire family, who were also dressed up. My husband (a complete introvert) braved the crowds to help me install the giant inflatable dragon that breathed fire from atop my car. The mom in the car parked on the other side of mine was dressed in PJs and a bathrobe; she told me her costume was “teachers after school.” I felt that in every ounce of my being! I lost count of the students who asked if I was handing out computers and who, despite me not being in a costume, told me I looked familiar but didn’t actually know who I was. This year has been clouded by an indescribable fog that seems to have settled over all of education, but on Friday, for two short hours in the C.M. Bradley parking lot, that fog lifted. It was the most normal I have felt all year. It was busy, happy, and exhausting, but it was good for the soul to hear all that happy in one place!
