It's June.
We are nearing the end of it all: lunches, Pro-D days, permission forms, agendas, random asks for money in strange amounts (who has $7 just lying around?), presentations, library books, homework, auditions, talent shows, Christmas concerts, 400 Scholastic order forms to recycle while feeling guilty that you missed the deadline again, 8,000 other fundraising forms to recycle that you don't feel guilty about turfing at all, Pokemon trading fights, meetings with teachers, reports cards - I mean, "Communications of Learning,"- tired days, sad days, happy days, playdates, dance recitals, guitar lessons, birthday parties and more.
The end of ten months of constant, unrelenting "things" that you have to do, or remember, (or don't) is approaching and I am filled with joy.
Having young children in school is not exactly the easiest thing to manage with working parents. Before we had kids, life felt busy, but fun. We could decide to go out or stay home or have a leisurely day off as we liked. On my days off, I used to tackle various house projects or organize something or learn a craft. Or sometimes, we would just take the dog for a walk and then have a nap after ordering in food.
Now I find myself looking forward to getting a little bit sick (not a lot, just a tiny man-cold) just so I can take it easy and rest.
I love my life.
I love my husband, my kids and my family and friends here.
June is just a bit much and it feels like a wave that is about to break and drown us all in art projects and journals. By June, we have run out of interesting lunch ideas and have taken to cook dinners for the sole purpose of having leftovers to throw in their lunches.
The curriculum has been taught, assessments are complete and the final weeks are an assortment of necessary movie days, sports days, presentations and general non-academic silliness - plus a Pro-D day or two thrown in for fun.
We are all tired.
The parents, the kids and especially the teachers. Maybe if one of us did not work full time, June would feel more manageable but perhaps, like housework, stress and exhaustion expand to fill the time available. But we can see the light approaching and the lazy summer days seems close at hand.
I do wonder, is it a light at the end of the tunnel or an oncoming train?
