i swear it was just a muffin...

i have an issue. i am not picking on a particular religion, because honestly, i don't even know which religion(s) i would be picking on. (dangling paticiple again...)

we are a nation based on basic freedoms. some of those basic freedoms involve being able to worship whenever and however we choose, so long as the worshipping does not violate any of the local laws. (i mean like sacrificing virgins and stuff.) i get that. some of those basic freedoms guarantee that we should not be perscuted nor forced to participate in anything that may violate our religious beliefs. i get that, too. what i don't get: parties - more specifically the lack thereof.

i am a room parent. i have the responsibility of planning events that correspond with the calendar year, in various forms. for example, valentine's day, cinco de mayo, memorial day, martin luther king day, and of course the much-talked-about plethora of winter religious holidays. oh, and birthdays. there are some children in class with my children who practice a faith that does not allow them to celebrate anything. nothing. not even groundhog's day. not the passing of the seasons. not even birthdays. birthdays????

we, as room parents, try very hard to work around the "not celebrating thing" so the kids don't feel left out. we have friendship celebrations instead of thanksgiving parties - even instead of valentine's parties. we had a book parade where we each dressed as a character from a book, then we did fall activities instead of halloween. we are not "allowed" to sing happy birthday to a child when these special religious children are in the room, so do you know what happens? they have to leave the room. their parents tell the school to make them leave the room. they have to sit in the hall and color a boring old picture, while listening to their friends sing songs and eat cupcakes and do crafts. how the hell do you justify taking away a little fun from a child? four- and five-year olds are brought to tears when they know it's someone's birthday.

whose god hates birthdays anyway? and WHY????? i am inspired to write tonight because i was trying to be extra sensitive today. my ds2 had a birthday over the weekend. when i asked him what treat he'd like me to make to bring to class, my boy asked for me to bring muffins. apple muffins. no frosting. no candles, no sprinkles. brown-colored, apple streusel muffins.

when i arrived to pass out snack, one of the two special religious children in the class asked, "are they for a birthday?"

i replied, "no, his birthday was yesterday. these are just for a treat."

she stood up and walked to the other side of the room and told the teacher, "i can't have birthday muffins, and neither can he," pointing to the other special religious child. they took their snacks (one had a little debbie and the other had fruit gummies and they both had juice boxes) and went into the hall. they were just muffins. aren't special religious children kids too? or are they not really children, they just look that way?

people who don't allow their kids to have fun: please...you don't come into the classroom and see your babies faces when they have to leave the room. is their god punishing them for something? please explain what the deal is. i like to share and it breaks my heart to exclude them!

i just wanted to share muffins with everyone!!