These are my nephews. They started school last week. That’s Charlie on the left. I’m happy to report that Charlie’s first day of school turned out a lot better than he’d anticipated.My son starts preschool next week. He tells me he’s “not very excited” about it. He wishes he could just stay home and hang with me and his little brother. I understand how he feels. Preschool is going to burst open the insular bubble that we’ve dwelt in for the last four years. All of a sudden, he will be exposed to new people, ideas, and influences. Most of which will be out of my control.
This is just the beginning. With each year it will accelerate until he’s a young man ready to take life on without me. This is good, I know. I brought him into this world, but he’s got to live in it. And I’ve got to step back and let him do it.
But for now, he’s just a little boy. Like so many others today, he's nervous about a new experience. That anxiety is real and can be big. So let’s send good thoughts and a little cheer out to all the kids starting school today. They are being very brave—and will hopefully be rewarded for it with great friendships, solid learning, and lots of laughter along the way.
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5 comments:
I watched all the kids with spotless new backpacks strapped to their bags marching off to the neighborhood school this mornings. Most had parents trailing behind with large bags of school supplies.
I always love the first day of school. Best of luck to all the kiddos out there!
I was riding to work on the bus this morning when I realized that I'd forgotten to get dressed. Moreover, I had an important exam for which I had not prepared!
Thankfully, I woke up and realized that there was no exam. Of course, that didn't explain the lack of pants.
MTC, good thing the children's theatre has all those costumes on hand for the upcoming costume sale. The odds are good you found a pair of bottoms that got you though the day. The jester pants, perhaps...or something loose and flouncy from The Big Friendly Giant? I'm sure you looked very becoming.
I never got to go to preschool, or kindergarten, either. I started fist grade when I was five, and I didn't know how to tie my shoes yet. (If Velcro had been invented, it wasn't on the market.) After a few weeks of having to tie them for me, my teacher got exasperated and told my parents I'd better learn to do it myself or she'd kick me out and I'd have to start over again the next year. So I stayed in an entire Saturday morning getting the skill down, and I had to miss "Big John and Sparky" on the radio (an archaic but lively form of mass communication in which you heard voices but saw no images). Sad, true story.
Top that one, Mr. Clown Pants. Oh. You already did.
Oh, Bob...that sounds miserable. Nasty teacher! When I think back to similar experiences in school, it makes me wonder if teachers sometimes forget how easy it is to stress out little kids.
I do admire your dedication to the task, however.
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