Mrs.O's writing room.

Yesterday was Sam's last day of class. This evening I attended my last 2nd year partners' dinner. There are a few more "lasts" to come, I will update you as we go along.

The first time I saw you, oh you looked so run down And I had a feeling we'd never get a long Philly, you came along and didn't impress me at all Now our lives are intertwined but it won't be for long When I go it's you that I'll miss A place like this grows on you oh oh oh Okay enough with stealing Lionel Richie's words. I 'll make up my own. IT WAS RIGHT HERE - PHILADELPHIA They say that you are the city of brotherly love, I don't know When I first looked at you, it was clear to me that you had been through some pretty tough times From your worn out buildings and crowded streets, I could tell you had seen better days Your people - Aisha, Lakisha, Tanisha, Malcolm and little Sasha running around in the playground, mama keeping a close eye and belting out in her stern don't-make-me-come-there kind of voice if any of them strayed too far Michael and Susan holding hands as they run to school while dad folds up the stroller and mom parks the car Student

It's almost time to say bye to good ol' Philly. In about two weeks, Sam will be through with Wharton, then comes graduation and what do you know? it will be over. We'll soon be saying farewell to the Philly that I have grown to love, with it's run down buildings and unique people... I feel a poem coming on

Last week, I read about the tragic fire that burned 19 children to death at Budo Junior . Oh how my heart sank. Every story I read (even as the details unfold) brings tears to my eyes. I think about the pain and desperate state of the parents. How shocked, overwhelmed, and shattered they are, in a manner that no one can truly express. Losing a child, whether it's 2 days old, still in the womb, or even 50 years old is all the same. The memory of carrying this child for nine months, more or less, being blessed with the opportunity of seeing them grow, their laughter, their habits is ever so real, like it was yesterday. I grieve with these parents because I have experienced similar pain. The feeling of absolute loss. Feeling like there's no reason to live another day. The difference in my case is that I know God, I wonder if they do too. Who do they run to in a time such as this when no amount of consolation from friends, neighbours, sympathisers, relatives, strangers can even be

Looks like I'm getting swept into the presidential campaigns. I just noticed that my last post was also about Obama. It's the hot topic right now ... Our friend Julian saved us some VIP tickets for the Obama rally at the Independence Mall. It was a very welcome idea. It's nice to be involved in the making of history. At about 5:30, Sam, Mich, Eddie, Ham and I headed to Center City for the rally. Lots and lots of people, the place was crowded, we didn't think we would make it in. But thankfully a few phone calls by Ham managed to get us into the thick line. There was no pushing and the line was moving along so we were able to get in about 6:30pm. The crowd comprised of people from all walks of life, babies, grannies, students, toddlers name it, they were there. We stood for about 3 hours just waiting for "the man" to show up. Every one was psyched, there was great music blasting from the speakers. People were dancing, singing along and talking to every one, it

The first thing Sam told me when I woke up this morning was that John Legend was putting up a show in Philly. For a second there I wondered if he had said John Lennon or John Legend . Obviously it was Legend duh! it would have been kind of spooky if it had been the former. I met Julian, a good friend of ours and one of Sam's classmates, he too told me about the show and reminded me that it was free. I thought why not. Picked Mich up from school and headed straight for the auditorium. There were only a few people waiting in line by the time we got there but it turns out we were early. Students started flocking in after a while. It was well organised, no pushing or "fixing people", every one stood in line and waited their turn to enter. First on stage was Kal Penn telling us why we should vote for Obama . I thought he had an Indian accent judging from the movies he'd acted in but no, it's all American. Students were excited to see him but after a while they begun

It's the most wonderful time of the year. New life, new hope, fresh zeal, all wrapped up in the beautiful flowers that speak of God's greatness. I liked this one because it was just budding, I love the way the leaves are beginning to pop out.

WICS went very well.

So I go to pick Mich up from school today, I open the door and see one of my little friends - a girl who is as cute as a button. Her face lights up when I walk in the door, I give her a wide smile and wave. Seconds later I notice one of the male teachers a few meters behind her waving back at me with a weird look on his face. Shoot! I believe he thought I was smiling and waving at him but couldn't figure out why I was so happy. Anyway I immediately darted into the lunch room which, thank goodness was just where it needed to be. I'm hoping he doesn't think I've gone crazy or something. The scene keeps playing in my mind, clearly I'm not over it. I felt embarrassed but I can't explain that I was waving at my little friend, then again I don't need to, it was just awkward.

I signed up to participate in the African dance for the Wharton International Cultural Show. Rehearsals have been on almost every other day. I did a lot of sitting around for the most past of the winter, now all over a sudden I'm working out like there is no end in sight. My body (poor thing) must be going through shock, wondering what's going on. With the first practices I was aching every where, now I just feel exhausted. This should help me lose a few pounds. It doesn't help that the rest of the dancers are tiny, I'm like the big mama in the group. Other than that, it's fun interacting with Wharton students. The function is later on today and I'm looking forward, I think it's gonna be lots of fun. After this I have to tune my voice for a wedding on Saturday. That should be quite interesting, I haven't attended any serious functions for almost two years let alone an American wedding. I'm not quite sure what the dress code is, I might have to go loo

What's in a dream? It's a question I've been pondering. Lately I've had some pretty intense dreams and I'm wondering what to make of them. When I have good dreams I kind of hope they manifest, but when I have not-so-good ones I just want to forget that they happened. For almost three consecutively nights I've dreamed and been able to recount most of the details. Dreaming in itselft is a stretch, or when I do I can't for the life of me remember what happened. Friday night, I dreamed that I was doing a photo shoot with Denzel Washington. Mmm! not bad, not bad at all. We took the photos and that was it. I wasn't falling over myself about taking pictures with Denzel. But in another corner of my mind (maybe the part of me that was awake??) I was thinking "girl, you got it good, people would bend over backwards to have this opportunity". The "me" in the dream was very laid back, we took the photos and sat there waiting for I don't rem