4 Kids | Perfect Game

It was just over a year ago when San Francisco Giants' pitcher Matt Cain pitched a perfect game. What's a perfect game, you ask? Well, it's when a pitcher pitches a minimum of 9 innings without anyone on the other team reaching base. Matt Cain did it against the Houston Astros on June 13, 2012 -- the first pitcher to do it in Giants' franchise history.

 

You might be wondering where I'm going with this.

 

Well, for many of you, today is the first day of school. Yes, I know I blogged about "Back to School" last week (even though that was more about obedience school). But today I'm wondering how many of you will have a perfect game this year -- or rather, perfect attendance.

 

Perfect attendance. As in not missing even ONE day of school. Have you done it before? Huge props if you have. But on this first day of a new school year, why don't we make a promise to not miss even one day of school.

 

You can do it. You really can.

 

I know. I know. If you wake up in the middle of the night with stomach flu and spend the early hours of the day lying on the bathroom floor, I can understand staying home from school.

 

But really, haven't we all stayed home from school for no good reason? I don't want a show of hands here. But let's just be honest with ourselves. Lots of us have probably stayed home when we really could have gone to school.

 

So let's make this a perfect year! No faking being sick. Are you with me?

 

Here's the deal: if you stay home from school when you're really, truly not sick, you are going to miss something. Maybe it's an important assignment. Maybe it's an important math thing that you'll need the rest of your life. Maybe it's hearing a funny story read by your teacher. Maybe it's the chance to give the right answer to a question when no one else in your class can. That would be cool, right?

 

Staying home from school (or work) when I'm not sick reminds me of a great poem by Shel Silverstein, simply titled "Sick." You can find this poem in that great collection of Shel's poems, Where the Sidewalk Ends. "Sick" is the story of little Peggy Ann McKay who simply cannot go to school because she's got a whole lot of sickness going on. Here are my favorite lines:

 

My hip hurts when I move my chin,

My belly button's caving in,

My back is wrenched, my ankle's sprained,

My 'pendix pains each time it rains.

 

Pretty funny, right? I don't want to ruin the ending if you haven't read it yet. But let's just say Peggy Ann McKay learns a thing or two.

 

But seriously, make a promise to yourself to have a perfect game -- I mean, perfect attendance -- this year.

 

And don't forget, the library is full of great resources to help you with those school assignments. Visit us often.

 

Here's to a wonderful school year!

 

Happy reading!