My first blog involves a school bus and a hamster

Something in the news today helped me decide to start a blog. I figure I have a lot to say, and rather than overload my friends and family with an email everytime I think I have a profound thought or come across something cool, here is my blog. You can all choose for yourself whether or not it is worth your time. (Please be patient. It is still a work in progress. I am not very good at picking colors.)

Today in the news:

• Gunman opens fire on a college campus in Illinois, injuring 17 and killing 6 (so far)
• Mitt Romney endorses former rival John McCain
• Roger Clemens testifies before Congress about his alleged steroid use
• Valentine's Day Spending: How much is too much?
• 3-year-old boy with leukemia recieves Make-a-Wish wish: to ride a school bus

Keeping up with the news all day can be a whirlwind sometimes. Some days the news isn't always as erratic as others, but on a day like today pay too close attention and you may get dizzy.

Despite everything newsworthy that happened on this day, it was a sidebar news headline that caught my eye and made a lasting impression on me. My summary below is about as long as the news article itself...

Prabesh Sapkota of Omaha, NE, will be 4-years-old on March 21. He was diagnosed with leukemia when he was just 2.5. Ever since he could say "bus", he wanted to ride a school bus as he had seen them often. His mother promised him that when he turned four he would get that chance. But his parents were not sure he would make it to his fourth birthday which is a little over a month away, so they threw him an early birthday party to celebrate. Today, a big yellow school bus picked up 3/4-year-old Prabesh and took him to kindergarten.

http://www.ketv.com/family/15304410/detail.html

Lots of kids will ask to go to Disneyland, to meet their favorite ball player, to shake hands with the President, all of which are very worthy and deserved wishes, but of anything, this little guy could have asked for, his wish was a ride on a school bus. Granted, maybe if he were older, he would have had more of his wits about him and asked for something more, but I can only imagine how much that ride meant to him as he made his way up those bus stairs.

Such a simple gesture, a simple pleasure. I could learn a lot from a 3/4-year-old.

And you could all learn a lot from the kindergarten teacher. To help Prabesh feel comfortable visiting her class and an elementary school for the first time, she let Prabesh play with her secret weapon: Daisy the hamster.

Hamsters make everything better.

And that's my first post.