Taking Sides: FF #3 - Remembering

Laurent Le Deunff

Taking Sides

by Lee Heffernan

 

 

            I remember his face when he pulled the gun out of his backpack.  He displayed it proudly, flat in his two hands. Just like when he brought in the fishhooks he found at Lake Monroe.  Just like the time he brought his dead hamster.  Hard as a rock.  

            "I borrowed this from my grandfather. It's called a LeMat pistol. You probably think they only used rifles in the Civil War, but they used pistols too.  My grandfather told me this was a Confederate gun."  

 

            I remembered back to yesterday when I kicked off our new social studies unit with a read aloud, Taking Sides in the Civil War. When I finished reading, Ian shouted out, "My grandfather knows everything about the Civil War."   

            "That's great," I told him as I popped in a DVD about Lincoln. With a brand new Dixon Ticonderoga, Ian took notes during the film, covering his paper with pictures and words about our sixteenth president.

 

            The kids' eyes now shifted from Ian's gun to my face to Ian's face back to the gun.   They knew what was supposed to happen next.  Reporting to the office.  Calling Ian's dad. Suspension. Everyone knew this except Ian. A fourth grader should know better. He probably did know, but he couldn't help himself. I remember his eager face, his sparkly eyes.   He wanted the class to be excited about his Grandfather's Civil War artifact.  He wanted me to be excited.  Especially me, I think. 

 

            "Put it back in your backpack, Ian.  It's very cool, but don't bring it back to school.  Put your backpack behind my desk and I'll help you carry it out to your dad's car when he picks you up at the end of the day." I remember he looked disappointed that he couldn't pass it around the circle like we usually do.  He stashed the backpack and I called over to him, "Ian, please bring that basket of library books on the side table over to Morning Meeting. We're going to start the day with some Civil War research."  I remember his grin as he lugged the basket back to the circle.  He reached in and took Back to Gettysburg before anyone else could grab it.  

 

            That whole school year, I tried to work with him on his impulse control issues, but I can't say I was successful.