Tuesday, September 6, 2011

Thump, Thump, Thump...

The rain ruined Ben's first drop off of first grade. I won't go so far as to say it ruined his first day of school, as he has not finished it yet, but the day he has been looking forward to for weeks now got rained on; not just sprinkled either - DUMPED on!

He woke up excited, ate breakfast excited, got dressed excited, even walked to school under his umbrella excited. It all started to get less exciting though when the pouring rain forced all kids, parents, and siblings all into one room with one door leading to it. It got a little crazy. I think Ben was picturing himself showing up to a sunny schoolyard where he would be able to run around a bit before I dropped him at the door, where he'd give me a quick hug and blow me a kiss before following his teacher neatly and orderly through the door and up to his classroom.

When he joined the chaos and other clearly nervous kids in the wet, humid, and crowded hallway, he squeezed my hand extra tightly and said quietly, "Mom, it hurts a little bit right here" with his other hand over his heart.

With a little lump in my throat, I explained to him that he was just getting a little nervous because it wasn't quite as orderly as he so loves it and that was just his heart thump thumping a little too hard. I assured him the feeling would go away once he got up to his classroom and away from the chaos. He squeezed my hand again and said, "Yeah, you're probably right. I do feel a little nervous and can't wait to find my teacher and my class!"

It continues to amaze me how alike Ben and I are sometimes. I remember quite vividly my first day of first grade and the uncomfortable thump thump thump of my heart.

I can't wait to pick him up in a couple hours to hear how the rest of the day went for him. Milestones are tough sometimes (for kids and moms) and growing up requires a lot of courage for kids, even if it is just the courage to face a crowd of strangers and fight the discomfort that comes with being a new kid in a new place surrounded by chaos. I am "all grown up" already and just the thought of being in Ben's place today makes me a little sweaty...





3 comments:

  1. So sweet!! Jack doesn't look too thrilled with the whole rain thing either. :)

    ReplyDelete
  2. no, i don't have a rain cover for my stroller, so he was not happy at all! he was drenched by teh time we got home!

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  3. Grandma Kathy sayas, "We've been praying for Ben to have a great first day, hopefully it got better once he got to class. You paint a wonderful picture with your words, when I read this I feel like I was right there with you with my heart thumping, too."

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