It saddens me a little sometimes when I do drop off and in the course of the morning circuit I have to return to the Elementary School after dropping off the older one at his campus just a few blocks away.
Whenever I can quickly contrast the difference between the ages at each school I awe at how much these little people change in a short amount of time. The little dramas they concoct at the younger grades are more male belief than the concerns the bigger ones face that could have actual consequences. The tiny ones are still in awe of us so-called-adults whereas the pre-teens keep us at a safe distance.
I sometimes wish they didn
Locked Out of Heaven
The kid sank deeper into the back seat with worry. At the wheel, the father was making wild gestures with his face and the most rapid articulations with his arms. There was sincere pleading from the concerned tyke but they were being ignored. The other more experienced kid in the passenger seat sat in resolved silence. “This will pass like it always does” he muttered to himself. Finally at the drop off the younger kiddo fumbled fast to unlock the backdoor and escape to her campus and away from the mad-energy.
To outsiders, once the car door opened the deafening beat of Bruno Mar’s Locked Out of Heaven wailed out and the dad inside kept on Car-Dancing with Muppet like precision.
The child still within the vehicle and the one that had escaped exchanged glances…first a glare then pity.
On a Mission to Civilize
A curious little guy approached me today while I was looking for my youngest on the campus quad. Without even a hello he asked me if I could volunteer a word he could look up in his well-worn yellow kid-Dictionary. Not wanting to disappoint I rallied my un-caffeinated brain cells and they offered
Nightmare at the Drop Off
The man policing the perimeter didn
Hugging it Out
At drop off today the kids as usual moseyed off to class without even giving a good bye or look back. That’s typical. As I started to plug in my phone’s headset so I could listen to the latest biography a scene reached my eye. A husky big man was embracing a boy with all his might. They swayed as they hugged and even from my far off spot I could tell this exchange meant a whole lot to the two. Eventually they had to peel away from one another and the boy (who could not have been older than 10) heading into campus.
The big guy in his gray pants and crimson sweater waited and watched his boy get lost in the throng of kids. Funny that he didn’t look like the “hugging” type when I had a change to give him my full estimate.
My assessment matters not…he got his love for the day and I ached a little for not getting mine.
Spots of Tears
While at my sales meeting I looked down at my black shirt and noticed a couple of spots. I then remembered hugging my daughter at drop off earlier in the morning while she cried. I had to do some parenting and since I couldn’t have her leave with tears we shared an embrace. The two salty spots reminded me of that moment…the one she’s surely long forgotten about by now.