An unsuspecting preschooler headed to school with her lunchbox full of goodies packed by mom, fully expecting to enjoy it later at the appropriate time. I'm wondering if she would have insisted on skipping lunch that day or even preschool altogether, if she had known the attention her lunch menu would garner.
A teacher made the decision to confiscate the child's turkey and cheese sandwich and replace it with a more nutritionally sound meal of chicken nuggetts prepared by the school. Personally, I have nothing against chicken nuggets but I think the person eating the meal or in this case, the mom preparing the meal should determine the type of poultry her child consumes.
When did teachers start inspecting the contents of lunch boxes? Who determined that chicken nuggets was the healthier choice over turkey? Have Americans become too ignorant to prepare meals for their offspring? Will someone be coming to our homes to throw out unnacceptable breakfast choices and offer healthier alternatives? Will parents be subject to legal action if we do not provide meals that are approved by our children's teachers? Stay tuned as the media frenzy surrounding this story searches for the answers to these and other life or death questions this story has produced.
Not making national headlines, but an equally important story has surfaced on a local level right here in our own quiet little community of Killen, Alabama. A source who wishes to remain anonymous, revealed to me today that Brooks High School has announced that any student caught with marshmallows in their possession will be suspended from school. From what I understand a terrible battle was fought in the science and math building with marshmallows being the weapon of choice. Thankfully no injuries have been reported but that does not negate the seriousness of this incident. We all know how dangerous marshmallows can be, while researching the story I read on facebook about a marshmallow gun that is especially effective if you use the old lick'em and stick'em move, a strategy obviously developed by a seasoned soldier familiar with marshmallow weaponry.
To this I would say, thank you to the dictators who are making the important decisions that we as parents do not have the good sense to make. Take the turkey off the table, the marshmallows out of the schools and we will produce fine young Americans who realize that mom and dad are not capable of making sound decisions without outside interference or...... we could just stay out of lunch boxes that don't belong to us and tell the kids not to play with marshmallows at school.
