the final countdown

yesterday marked one week until michael allen starts kindergarten. what's this? am i really going to add words like homework, cafeteria, uniform, campus, carpool, and conferences to my everyday vocabulary? a large majority of my conscious mind is excited for him, happy to get back into a routine, and anxious to find out what type of student he will be in "big school." a much smaller part, the part i like to call the paranoid mother bear, is nervous about my little cub going out into the big wide world. i know michael will be like most children his age and adapt to his new environment. children are amazingly resilient. but my background haunts me. ideas of teachers with preconceived notions about certain children. teachers who really should retire, but choose to stay in the profession even though they aren't passionate about teaching children. and most of all, what i feel the most apprehensive about is other parents. gossip. malicious misinformation being passed from ear to desirous ear. we've already fallen victim to said activity before the school year even begins. maybe that was a good thing. i'm even more resolute now in my determination to let school be just that, school. michael's place to learn and make new friends. not a place for me to hang out and be one of those omnipresent mothers just so i can say i'm involved and in-the-know. in the end, this shall be a learning experience for all of us. i'm confident michael will do well as a kindergartner. let's just hope i can be as resilient as the children.