The world has been on fire this week.

The death toll from an earthquake in Nepal continues to grow.  Iran is testing its boundaries in the Gulf of Aden while refugees flee Libya in overloaded ferries.  And in Baltimore, just a couple of hours away from my home, rioters used one man's tragic death as an excuse for assault, arson and theft.

So tonight I'm thankful for kindergarten.

I'd had the substitute assignment scheduled for some time.  Just a half day, but my to-do list was long, and I couldn't help but think of all the items I could cross off in that three-and-a-half hours.

But a promise is a promise and so I showed up.  I thank God I did.

Singing "Days of the Week" (mix "The Addams Family" theme song with, well, the days of the week), reading about the instruments in an orchestra, and helping a group of five-year-olds write about big dogs and elephants reminded me of life's sweetness.  By the time we danced to "Happy" by Pharrell Williams I really was...happy, that is.

The world has been on fire this week, and to some extent it always will be.  But yesterday I remembered that beauty is just as present, just as real as ugliness---I only have to look for it.

And having a five-year-old's perspective doesn't hurt.