A common litany among my middle school students is “That’s not fair!”

They apply the sentence to all kinds of situations, many of which have nothing to do with fairness. They always whine when they say it.

They use it a lot more than my high school kids ever did.

Well, after this past week, I’m starting to adopt their litany.

The titles of my last couple of posts had to do with survival and depletion. Because teaching middle school is hard. At least it is for me now, and a large part of that difficulty is my physical fatigue.

I was really hoping that this past week would be the one in which I turn the corner.

You know, turn the corner onto a new block, a block where I start to feel stronger, where I don’t have to get to bed so very early, where I don’t struggle to make it through a week.

But that’s not what happened this past week.

Not at all.

Tuesday I woke with the symptoms of a stomach bug. The nausea and sickness lasted through Wednesday afternoon.

Thursday, however, was a good day. I felt stronger. I had a Relay for Life meeting at 6 PM and didn’t have to drag myself to it.

I really thought I’d turned the corner then.

And then I woke Friday to a different set of symptoms of a stomach bug. It was a tiring day of feeling rotten.

And then yesterday, Saturday, I woke with a scratchy throat. I thought, “Uh oh, is this a cold or allergies?” I was rooting for allergies.

But it turns out to be a cold.

Today every bone in my face and on top of my head hurts. My throat is sore and even more scratchy than yesterday. My head is all stuffed up. I feel dizzy.

Really, Universe, really??! 

It’s not enough to be depleted?

I have to be sick twice in one week with a stomach bug . . .  and then come down with a cold???

It’s about time I catch a break, don’t you think?

Surely this will be the winding down of my physical struggles.

Surely.

Because, you know what?

I’m sick and tired of feeling sick and tired.

And this is starting to feel REALLY not fair! (read with whiny voice)