join the club...

I absolutely love Eli's school - Hammond Westside Montessori. Eli likes it as well, which is a huge plus! 
The discussion on the way to school today was all about the clubs offered to the students and I must say, if a child can't find a place to fit in...well, they need to go see Eli. We got on the subject of clubs purely by accident. Eli drew a picture of clowns to scare me (the circus returns next week to rid the city of unsuspecting children...anyway, that's another story). He told me that he might join the clown club or the chicken club at school. I was intrigued by the chicken club. I thought it might be 4H so I asked what the chicken club was all about. Eli said," Dad, it's not what you think. They just stand around and act like chickens. They do this...(he mimicked a boy being a chicken whilst traveling in a car to school)" it was quite the elaborate chicken movement and I immediately thought two things. 1) this is going to be a fun ride to school 2) I wish we would have had a chicken club when I was a kid. Well, because of the surprising answer to the chicken club question, I asked what the clown club did...He said, "you learn to be a clown...like put on a clown face, how to fall down, and throw pies." I explained that I could not let him join the clown cub because clowns are creepy but a kid that knows how to walk and scratch like a chicken...now I could get behind that!.., BUT, I did question the pies, because pies can be expensive...did you have to buy your own pies?... where did the pies come from?...and he told me they come from the pie club...they make pies for the clown club - jelly filled ones. "Oh dad, one time this kid named Abraham threw a pie at me and hit me in the face".(laughter). I asked the logical question, "Is he in the clown club?" "No, he's in the pie club; but they want him in the clown club", he replied. (Pause) "It was strawberry and it went all over me". I told him that I didn't remember getting a call to bring him more clothes. "That's because. I got a rag from the rag club. They make rags for cleaning...oh, and towels and shirts and pants...they can make anything", he said. I said it sounds like a sweat shop club and those are illegal in America. He told me that it's not a sweat shop because the kids LIKE making things and they give their things away...to the helping club and the nice club...everyone should join these clubs....right?
I agreed.
I asked if there were any other clubs and there are...the library club which helps the reading club, the art club which helps paint the school ( again child labor laws come to mind), the music club which has a band that marches down the halls, and the dance club which dances to the music of the band.
I asked if there was a story club...for telling stories. I told him he could he the president! There isn't one of those yet...
Then he told me about the robotics club (a real club). I asked if they dressed up like robots or acted like robots trying to take over the world? - another logical question using the information that I had gleaned from our conversation thus far. " No, they get to build things. I really like building things too....I think I really want to be in this club", he said. I told him that I would look into it.
I really appreciate the symbiotic relationship and harmony between the clubs...OH...and the diversity - something for everyone!