I'm officially finished schooling at home. Lucas has completed his first day of grade 11 at a local Catholic high school (thus the uniform). Two to three mornings a week he'll be in one of his 2 classes then home on the bus, he'll have lunch and online for his second class in the afternoon. What did he think of it? Not much. Not yet anyway.
He would have thought more of it had he not had to wear a mask, if there had been more than 9 kids in his class, if there had been a school hockey team he could have played on, if he'd been given a locker or if he could have met up with his buddy after class. The buddy who goes to the same school but on opposite days because their last names are 18 letters apart in the alphabet. These are strange times indeed.
I guess the best way to look at all of it is that none of us are in this alone. Everyone is affected somehow and some are affected way more than others. So although Lucas is missing all kinds of things he was expecting to experience at school this semester, we'll try to look at the positives for him. Like:
the uniform - he won't have to spend any time trying to figure out what to wear in the morning - 5 extra minutes of sleep!
home for lunch - he won't ever have to pack one - another extra 10 minutes of sleep!
even though it didn't feel like it today, he'll still meet new people, it'll just take a little bit longer. We're praying for just one or two awesome new friends. With smaller classes, maybe it'll actually be easier to get to know some of the other kids.
taking the bus will give him some quiet time in the mornings (or even more sleep time) and it'll make him appreciate all the driving around I do for him...riiiiight?
Positives in this next season for me:
no more paying for curriculum!
some extra time to figure out what the next little while looks like for me. I haven't decided on anything 100% and am not in a rush but I'm having fun considering online courses, a part time job, starting my own thing, doing some writing, helping Tony out a little more with the business, starting a podcast, more gardening and/or volunteering as soon as things open up again. It's all kind of exciting. Do I do all of it or some of it? Maybe none of it and something else completely...who knows? Book a coffee date with me...that is something I definitely want to do :)
watching these awesome kids grow into their adultness. It really is a privilege. They make me so proud everyday. They still kick off their shoes and leave them right in front of the door in the hallway, and their dishes still seem unable to get into the completely empty dishwasher most of the time but, except for those teeny shortcomings (ok and a few more), I really am so proud of these peeps of mine. They're kinda some of my best friends...
more time dreaming with Tony. Our coffees in the morning seem to be lingering longer these days. I'm glad I still like him as much as I love him all these years later.
When I dropped Lucas off this morning (the busses don't run until next week) I stayed for a bit to watch him walk away from the car and into the school. He didn't look back. He didn't fully know what to expect but he knows that the can do it. I don't know what to expect either except that he's got this. And if we steer him towards the positives instead of the negatives this very strange year may turn into his best year yet. Go get 'em Luke!
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