So here is our Johanna donning her swiss attire. She wears it proudly and that makes my heart sing. She did a great job on her exhibit, as well. Such a lady of detail, organization and skill. She writes well, just like her mother ........so her report was amazing.
Didn't spend that much time with her, though. After about 15 minutes, her mother picked up on J's stress and suggested we move along. Jenaye is amazing and always tunes in to her children's needs. As does Josh!
Johanna (I will refer to her as Jo from here on out, so as to differentiate between Jenaye and Johanna.......J's get confusing.......let's not forget the dad, Josh! I do know that Johanna only likes certain people to use the name "Jo" for her.....and I don't think I am one of them. But for now, I use Jo! I like it alot! Blah, blah, blah, blah! Onto the point of this babbling.
I respect both Jenaye and Johanna's concerns, re: awaiting the first graders to come through and pose many questions about Jo's country. So, she kept looking for them to enter the gymnasium. I visited a couple of her friend's exhibits in the meantime. I was quite impressed with their efforts and willingness to share. I know many of her peers, so it was fun to see their projects. My how these lovely people have grown and matured. I can't believe my granddaughter will be in middle school next fall.
Do you remember being in 5th grade? I went to Catholic school, so I attended elementary school in the same complex through 8 grades. Never knew what it was like to go to different classrooms until then. High school was a nightmare for me. There is something to be said about middle school. A smoother
transition? What do you think?
I don't know why Jo chose Switzerland for her project. I neglected to ask............but I will! The interesting thing is that when I purchased the pattern for her costume, I noticed it was printed in four languages.........which included Swiss/German, etc. While I was cutting out the pieces, I saw the first half of my maiden name in the directions. I knew that my maiden name (Zwischenberger) meant "Between the mountains" Zwischen meaning between. Berger meaning mountains. Imagine my surprise and delight, when I read the word for "Gathering".............it was Zwischen. Zwischen - between, among, gathering. Wow! A gathering in the mountains. So sweet.
So I related that to Jo today and she thought it was pretty cool. Before I left the building, I touched her arm (she is at that age where she would be embarrassed by a hug from Grandma in such a setting,,,,,and I respect that) and said: We are leaving you now, so that you can pay attention to the Zwischen (gathering) of the first graders. She laughed and then smiled so sweetly and said, "Thank you for coming." It was a good day for me. I hope I left her with some good thoughts about her heritage.
