mrs arellano, could you shout?

Trina: “my friends think you’re the coolest mom in the world.”

Me: “why?”

Trina: “because you were the first parent to stand and shout.”

It was during a winter assembly at Trina’s school. Being in Honors choir, it was a pretty big deal for her that I show up. It would have been better if Ariel and I both attended but this was my first attendance at one of Trina’s assemblies this school year.

As the grand finale, 3rd to 5th grade students spread out in groups of 11 with each group representing one of the days of the song “12 days of Christmas” (Honors choir was day one). The parents were then instructed to shout the line with the group we were sitting closest to. I was sitting right next to the group “three french hens”. Before the song began, one of Trina’s classmate tapped me on my shoulder and said,

“Mrs. Arellano? Could you shout with us?”

When the song landed on us, I got up and shouted our line the loudest I could.

“four~ calling birds.”

and once again, I was the only parent. Again, and again until the school’s music teacher stopped the song at “six geese a laying” and asked the parents once again, to follow suit like the “lady over there by ‘three french hens’”.

Everyone chuckled. The students laughed and the teachers clapped. Me? I was proud and so was Trina.