A love not allowed
Always having to pretend
We became each others’
Secret friend

The thrill of it fed us
Illicit liaisons in the dark
Talking under the bridge
Walking around the park

No authority could conspire
To make our secret known
Always with excuses
So our cover was never blown

Until the pressure mounted
And blew up from within
It ripped our world apart
For new stories to begin

19th Oct 2024 – Shared with Ragtag Daily Prompt – secret

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Today I’m feeling:

Great, despite sleeping badly with aching hips and being too cold from the aircon. I got to school early and enjoyed multiple conversations with students. Most everyone seems to be in a good mood.

Today I’m grateful for:

The small office room at school that doesn’t get used much anymore and I can commandeer to talk one-to-one with students. I need to get them away from each other to see what they really know. To be honest, I don’t see much improvement during this time from most of them but hopefully, bits and pieces are sinking in.

The best thing about today was:

Checking in on David’s grade 8 class after my one-hour class and sitting with the poorer students and getting them started so they could start to see the pattern and what they needed to do. I think those students appreciated it especially when they realised how easy it was.

What was out of your control today and how did you handle it?

I got to the new immigration office pretty early but still ended up waiting about 45 minutes just to get the stamp in my passport for another year’s stay. At least I was prepared for this though and could catch up with some reading.

What is a photo that makes me smile every time I see it?

Maybe this used to be photos of Kim Chi but now those same pictures make me feel sad and miss her.

This picture brings back happy memories of new love and adventures.

Where did I show kindness?

Despite wanting to get out of school quickly to get some shopping done on the way home I ended up staying an extra 30 minutes and helping students in David’s class. I also followed up with one of the sleepers in that class to try and encourage them a bit more. It’s like leading cats forward with treats but at the end of the day the cat is still going to do what it wants to do.