Easter Bethy on Ocracoke

Recalling how much fun her friend Lucky the Leprechaun had last month, the Easter Bethy decided to spend a day in the village. She was not disappointed!

Knowing there was no cafeteria at Ocracoke School, EB grabbed a bunch of carrots just in case she got hungry and hopped aboard the trusty golf cart to make the 0.7 mile trip to school. This had been a crazy week at school– Arts Week– with the students involved with visiting artists sharing their talents. There was clowning (juggling, balancing acts, etc.), steel drums, set/props, jewelry; the students put on an amazing performance to culminate the week. Adding to the chaos was an outbreak of strep and flu which affected a lot of our kids.Friday was a half day, leading up to a much-needed Spring Break… so there was no telling what EB would find once she got there.

The Easter Bethy’s alter ego AKA Ms. Beth has planning first period, so she dropped in on all the little people (pre-k through 5th grade); seeing these little folks is one of the best parts of working at Ocracoke School. Even lunch duty is (almost) fun! One child noted that it was “the leprechaun”! And one little girl, a third grader who comes to my room for after-school was more than a little uncertain about me! After handing out stickers and hugs, we went back to the room to get ready for serious math business.

So let’s be honest here and admit that these are staged pictures! The EB was indeed in the math classroom but, truth be told, very little math went on Friday. We tied up some loose ends, ate some Peeps, looked at pictures from the previous night’s performance, and shared plans for spring break. Yes, this is a rare departure from standard classroom procedure. Even the Easter Bethy has her lighter moments!

Where else would EB go but to see the lighthouse as soon as school dismissed? No bells, remember. With the three levels of the school all being in two buildings and on different schedules, we can’t have bells. It is entirely possible that a few classes were allowed to leave a couple of minutes early. Well, some were released even earlier. About 20 minutes before actual dismissal time, my kids started getting texts saying they were home already! I strung mine along until 2-3 minutes before the bell would have rung if we had a bell! The island is coming back to life after the winter, and I was not the only person on the road or at the lighthouse. How fun to have people waving at the EB on the golf cart and taking my picture.

A quick stop at the post office… empty box… not even “Patron” mail… sad EB

Next stop: Jason’s Restaurant. Nothing like a nice salad topped with homemade– from fresh grilled tuna– tuna salad. With carrots! Perfect to soothe the day’s pain of no mail and no math! Looks like the whiskers are wearing away. EB didn’t have a mirror handy!

After lunch, EB went back to the house to do some laundry and packing. Spring break just ahead! And then she headed to the beach for a long walk, changing to her cooler attire since summer seems to have arrived early. So many visitors are on the island that EB went to a little further north to walk but stopped on the way home to snap a quick photo at the walkway. Look closely and you can see the ocean in the background.

The day was not yet over, but EB was getting tired. She was sorry not to make it out to the sound to see the sunset but caught a glimpse of it– no photos– from the back porch while she was packing the car, doing laundry and dishes, watering the plants. The island had a nice parade for St. Patrick’s Day but no such parade for Easter Bethy to participate in, so the day ended without fanfare. But all in all, a lovely day and now ready to catch the 7:00 AM ferry for the eight hour trip to Lewisville for spring break. Mountains, here I come!