March 1997

Memories of Shelly

Memories of Shelly Shelly's Place Virtual Art Gallery Shelly's Life and Family The Funeral Dear Friends Guestbook

Dr. Andrea Hansell, Shelly's school psychologist Over the last few days so many memories of your lively, feisty, sparkling little girl have come back to me. I remember her last fall, running on the playground with her friends, her cheeks pink, shrieking at the top of her lungs for the pure joy of hearing her own voice. I remember her enthusiastic singing and dancing at last year's Chanukah program, and at Graduation. I remember her assertiveness and sense of justice after I announced to the boys in her class last January that if they could stop hitting each other on the playground, I would promise them an ice cream party. "I don't get it," said Shelly. "Why should the boys get ice cream if they stop hitting each other when the girls are ALREADY behaving?" She was right, and in June I brought ice cream for the whole class, and had the pleasure of watching Shelly thoroughly enjoy her Good Humor Chocolate Eclair bar. I remember Shelly's pride. "O.K. Miss Archaeologist," she told me, when she thought I had checked on her once too often last spring (I was actually observing one of her classmates that day, but she'd had enough of me!). "The first grade does not need you today. Go check on some other class." Shelly got her Sidur with the first graders in June 1998. I remember Shelly's courage. When she came back this fall, sicker, weaker, having to face the other kids after losing her hair, she did not focus on herself or her difficulties. What she cared about was learning - school learning, and learning about other people. When I came out to the playground in early September to try to figure out who the new students were in Gan, First and Second Grades, Shelly started pointing them all out to me - "That's so-and-so, she's quiet but I'm making friends with her, that's so-and-so, his mother's the principal..." I told her she knew so much about everybody that I felt like I had an assistant psychologist! My last memory of Shelly is from a day at the beginning of the school year. I told her I liked the skirt she was wearing - when I describe it, you will probably know which one it was. Instead of just saying, "Thanks," like many children would, Shelly stopped and told me it was one of her favorite skirts, it was from the Gap, and she liked it because it was comfortable, but also it wasn't just one pattern like most clothes, it was a mix of different colors and patterns that fit together in a way she really liked. For a moment, looking at her skirt, she was totally absorbed in the beauty of how those patterns fit together. And that it is how I remember her. Go to another memory of Shelly told by: Annie O'Kane Beverly Warshai C. Christy Nemerovsky Deborah Rich Dina Kutinsky Dr. Hansell E. Emily Eisbruch Gili Malis HDS kids Jackie Schulstrom Kathe Schwayder Linda Mogren Mikhal Miki Topiol Nami Malis-Lifshitz Rivka Siden Shoshana Silverman Back to Shelly's place. created by Ruti Volk last updated 1-25-99