As we enter the final days of summer, I feel like a petulant child unwilling to let go of a favorite blanket. I stomp my feet and refuse to give myself over to earlier mornings and a more orderly schedule. I know I should look forward to crisp autumn hikes, pumpkin spice lattes, and all the other delights of Fall that I do love dearly, but I need a little more time please.
I spent most of the summer away from work at home with a six year old boy who very much needed a respite. Having just finished Kindergarten, he experience the joy of freedom that one can only appreciate once it is taken away for the very first time. Three months of days spent in pajamas, building forts, and getting waterlogged seemed even more sweet after 9 months of structured learning. I got to become reacquainted with the boy that I spend so much time worrying over and learned to fret a little less and laugh a little more. A wonderful thing blossomed this summer a friendship between a mother and her son.
Now that school is back in session and structure is forced upon us once again, I try to be positive as I help pick the coolest backpack and the lunchbox with flames. I even took first day pictures capturing the timid expectancy and fear in those grey-blue eyes. I wanted to say let's run away, let's get in the car and drive to the mountains. We'll find a trail and skip rocks into the ice cold water. I'll squeal when you pick up a salamander and tell you how brave you are. Instead we get in the car and drive to your little school with the sunny windows and painted sidewalks. A happy place, and your home away from home for the next nine months. I was delighted to meet your new teacher and hear about the friend you've made with the very same shoes as yours. Still, I am hesitant to let you go now that I've really found you. Will bad days make us sullen and quick to snap at each other? Will you growl from the backseat when I ask about your day? Can we hold the magic of our summer in our hearts even as our tans fade and time pushes forward?
I found this in the shop today and it made me think of us. A gentle reminder for the days ahead.
