First Day
Tuesday, September 6
Sniff. Sniff. Hey Mom. Hey, what's wrong? (oh shit, he hated school)
Dad won't let me play (oh shit he's a hooligan in the classroom, my mother, teacher of the year, is going to kill me).
Um, why? -- I don't know. sniff. sniff.
Put dad on the phone. Honey, why is he crying?
Because I asked him about school, and he won't tell me anything! So I told him you can't go out and play until you tell me what happened at school.
And my future played out in front of me. The next 13 years of cajoling, threatening, pursuading to get any nugget of information about what's happening with school, and his life, which he may or may not invite me to be a part of. The first 5 years of nuturing, encouraging conversation, working to talk about stuff gone - poof, first day of Kindergarten and already I'm begging for crumbs. OR Hubby could just not be as good as it as I am, clearly he would tell his mother about the great, exciting first day.
Ok, put him back on.
Hey bud, how was school. - Good.
So what did you do today.
Stuff. (ok little asshole, you're going to cough up more than that, I know your father is looking rather smug on the other end of this line, and I'm not going down without a fight).
Did you practice letters today? - No.
Did you say the pledge. - No.
Did you work on numbers. - No.
WHAT THE FUCK ARE THEY TEACHING YOU???? Ok I didn't actually say that last part, but by now I was annoyed and know that hubby had already gone through this excercise and now understood the talk or I will break you routine going on at the house. I being the more mature parent (ha) was not so easily detered. Ok, I just wanted to show hubby up, but hey I was not deterred.
Ok, well tell me what happned on the bus. Oh really, and then what? And for the next ten minutes we played the "and then what game". He talked aboud circle time, and music class, and work tables, and snack time, and I heard the joy of learning, and the voice of a boy who was relaxed and confident about school.
Are you ready to go back tomorrow?
Um, I wish it were still summer and I could play all day, but I kind of like it and tomorrow should be good.
True that little man, true that.
Dad won't let me play (oh shit he's a hooligan in the classroom, my mother, teacher of the year, is going to kill me).
Um, why? -- I don't know. sniff. sniff.
Put dad on the phone. Honey, why is he crying?
Because I asked him about school, and he won't tell me anything! So I told him you can't go out and play until you tell me what happened at school.
And my future played out in front of me. The next 13 years of cajoling, threatening, pursuading to get any nugget of information about what's happening with school, and his life, which he may or may not invite me to be a part of. The first 5 years of nuturing, encouraging conversation, working to talk about stuff gone - poof, first day of Kindergarten and already I'm begging for crumbs. OR Hubby could just not be as good as it as I am, clearly he would tell his mother about the great, exciting first day.
Ok, put him back on.
Hey bud, how was school. - Good.
So what did you do today.
Stuff. (ok little asshole, you're going to cough up more than that, I know your father is looking rather smug on the other end of this line, and I'm not going down without a fight).
Did you practice letters today? - No.
Did you say the pledge. - No.
Did you work on numbers. - No.
WHAT THE FUCK ARE THEY TEACHING YOU???? Ok I didn't actually say that last part, but by now I was annoyed and know that hubby had already gone through this excercise and now understood the talk or I will break you routine going on at the house. I being the more mature parent (ha) was not so easily detered. Ok, I just wanted to show hubby up, but hey I was not deterred.
Ok, well tell me what happned on the bus. Oh really, and then what? And for the next ten minutes we played the "and then what game". He talked aboud circle time, and music class, and work tables, and snack time, and I heard the joy of learning, and the voice of a boy who was relaxed and confident about school.
Are you ready to go back tomorrow?
Um, I wish it were still summer and I could play all day, but I kind of like it and tomorrow should be good.
True that little man, true that.
posted by Amy's Working @ 1:00 PM
