War and Peanuts

It's that time again. My turn has come to bring a snack to preschool. Never have I felt more disappointed for my daughter then when I had to choose between Soy Mango Vanilla Ice Cream or Pretzels for her birthday. We choose the soy stuff and she claimed to have liked it. Sure, you can try to jazz it up a little with some sprinkles but it's not the same. The snack list is absurdly limited and selfishly I admit, I have a problem with it. Among the laundry list of allergies there are the usual dairy items but also a few stranger ones like chocolate and cheddar cheese. The best "Ch" foods have been forbidden. Cast out of the classroom like some sort of pox. As I came to realize when I brought in our sorry excuse for birthday treats there is also a mango allergy. Luckily, the child had her own snack for just such occasions. Which brings me to my problem. Why can't these children do this regularly? When I was a kid those that couldn't partake in our class snack had a whole box of their own specially formulated treats that Mom or Dad brought in at the beginning of the year. Of course, these children were typically outcasts anyway but that is just not the point I'm trying to make here. Is it because these allergies are just that severe that if a peanut is even brought into the classroom someone's ribcage will collapse?

I know the real reason is because no one wants to be left out. No little kid wants to have a cupcake set down in front of them only to be taken away when realized they are allergic to the paper that surrounds it. Preschool isn't the appropriate venue for learning about life's disappointments just yet. 1st grade will do a terrific job in due time.