Don't Take This Personally, But, I Don't Want To See A Picutre Of Your Kid

Dear parents of the children smiling brightly in your first day of school photos,

Please do not take it personally when I skim past your darling child’s photo while checking my Facebook feed. I mean it sincerely. They are precious all decked out in their finest, smiling ear to ear. Well, at least the younger ones. Smiles of children eager for education and to see friends they have missed since May.

I am not being spiteful. Yes, I am jealous. I miss the days of taking my children for the first day of school. Twice over.

We bought my son’s school supplies.  We got to talk to him about his new clothes. He took me for a tour of his closet. Sent pictures of his new shoes. But, I will only see him once a week and every other weekend, until the holidays. It is hard to be the parent who isn’t the one there every morning to set his schedule at home. It is hard when the contact you have from the school is through the other parent. I will not get to see his face the first day of school.

And, I know that even though he has so much bravado, he us still worrying. It makes it even harder. He doesn’t always realize I know these things. But, I do. He wants a girlfriend really bad. And, he is trying to learn how to interact with them. He has made good friends with a couple of young ladies this summer. Also, his locker has two to three girls on each side. We are trying to encourage him to be his charming self. Not to push things. And, just make sure they know he is there. And, he will have it made. But, I still feel like I have had someone else drop him into a tank of Sharks. Middle school girls can be horrid, mean creatures. But, trying to step in for your child can be far more scarring than anything the girls can do.

Then there are the posts from parents whose children are starting their junior year of high school. My daughter should be with you. There should be great photos of her in some over the top hairstyle with a Black Veil Brides messenger bag. She would still be pouting because she can’t get her lip pierced. There would be a pencil bag full of sharpies and pencils. A sketch book full of designs that she has planned. There would be some boy would be hanging around.

 

But, that will not happen. I am so happy that you get a first day of school with your child. And, I expect you to relish in it. I hope to you soak in every tiny detail of every moment. The way they smell. How their hair feels when it brushes against your face. Their little quirks. Take it in and make a mental photograph. Squeeze them extra tight. You can never take too many photographs of them with their friends. Take time to cry if you need to. For those who get to spend every bit of their time in the summer with their children, it is terribly hard sometimes to let them go.

And, as I said, I am not bitter. Just jealous and happy for you at the same time.