Harmonie's Story
by Jennifer Moless

Not every five year old greets the first day of school with boundless excitement, total confidence, and overwhelming cheer. Harmonie didn't. Although she was willing to grab on to my waist and walk up to Room 9 with us, she did so in wary silence. Right before we entered the room, she tugged on my sleeve and opened our first conversation: "I like your outfit," she whispered. Harmonie had established her place as our resident Fashion Advisor, always ready to note when one's shoes matched one's earrings ("Niiiiice!") or when a color story was badly thought out ("Too much pink is...too much. I always put some yellow in. Or black.").

But Harmonie is valued in our class for more than her fashion advice! She is a valued playmate who likes to lead children in imaginative play. Harmonie is an eager worker, as ready to point out how she always wrote her first and last name on her paper. Even on the first day of school, though, Harmonie always seemed a little tired. She had a hard time sitting up on the rug or at a desk, and sometimes she would drag one of her legs while walking. Her stomach bothered her a lot, too.

Even though the class knew Harmonie often wasn't feeling well, we never imagined that she had cancer. On October 28th, her mom took her to the doctor. Tests found a mass in her stomach and smaller tumors elsewhere. Since then, Harmonie has had six rounds of chemotherapy, broken a bone in her spine during a fall at the hospital, had two surgeries to remove tumors, and been diagnosed and treated for a hernia. She is now at UCSF Children's Hospital waiting for a bone marrow transplant and radiation therapy. Her mom is on unpaid leave from Children's Hospital so that she can be with Harmonie during these difficult months.

Harmonie may not be at school, but we take every chance to see her! Her classmates have written letters and made videos for us to take when we visit her. We also bring Valentines, handmade stuffed animals, coloring books, origami projects, and love letters from a certain first grader who shall remain nameless.

Soon Harmonie will be six years old, and just a few days after she will have her final treatments and, we hope, check out of the hospital for good! All of El Dorado hopes she will be back with her classmates when they have their promotion ceremony on May 22nd. Just because she isn't in class doesn't mean she's not a part of Room 9 and our school!