Back to School!

I guess I need to remember to be careful what I wish for. Thanks to an over-zealous soccer opponent, Sam is out of all sports for the rest of the Summer an Fall. His finger is broken into the growth plate, has nerve damage, and for the last month, he has had a claw-liike bandage on the middle finger, which allows him to legally flip people off, which he enjoys immensely.
The first day of school was today, and each one went to just a half-day, giving them just enough time afterward to come home and fight. I think their classes will be okay, but they both think they're suffering, she with no girlfriends on her "team," an he with his buddies in the other class. Bummer. They might just both study more this way, and actually do better.
There is something about watching kids go to school the first day- it's just a marking of time, a ritual of some type, which always seems to indicate somehow that all is right in the world. I might not feel that way if I were in the classroom all the time, but it is fun to watch all the kids. Hopefully the new schools in the district will do well, and the kids in those schools will adapt and have successful years too. It's something to hope for.

May Madness and "May"hem

Our month began with my precious fifthgrader going to a middle-school orientation and it hasn't gotten easier or slowed down yet! What a whirlwind of a month and only a bit past half-way finished. Today is the day to honor graduates and one of the darlings may/may not graduate yet. What a mess. And my thoughts are "don't let that happen to my little girl!"
Since when are sixth graders treated like young adults? That's the spiel they gave at middle school. They treat them with "respect" (fine with me, everybody oughtta get that) and like "young adults." What? They aren't close. More than half haven't hit physical puberty, even if their vocabularies have. That could be the source (not just there but in the country) of why kids younger are acting so mature at earlier ages. Then of course they make adult decisions (sex, drugs, etc) and society wonders why... My little girl is going to stay exactly the age she is, even if she fights it kicking and screaming. It's hard enough to get her to shave her underarms :-).
It seems contradictory to have ceremonies for kids who won't graduate, or aren't for reasons they have caused. Is it rewarding them in spite of their unwillingness to do what they should? I wonder.
I've always thought life was like the "Let's Make a Deal" game, with each person being faced with several doors to choose and "surprises" behind each. Door One has a professional position and career, Two has a child without spouse, Three has spouse and child, Four has extended education, etc. Once you pick one, you have to go that way at least for a while. You can't change once the door has opened, at least until you have seen what each choice entails. Then I suppose you can modify your choice these days, which is the beauty of the modern/postmodern world. I hope my kids take door Four, though who can tell? College is becoming exclusive again, as the costs rise to rates that scholarships can't cover, and the middle class and lower classes struggle to afford even junior college... but that's another post for tomorrow!