His Favorite Part of School

Last fall I dropped you off for the first day of school. By the end of summer, you asked every day, “Does school start tomorrow?” I would say ‘no’ as we counted down the weeks, then days.
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We walked into school the first morning, your little hand clutched in mine. You walked behind me, peeking out from behind my legs. Who was this shy boy? I bent down, gave you a hug and said, “I’ll be back at lunch to pick you up, okay? You’ll have fun!” I smiled big and hoped my excitement would rub off. You wrapped your arms around my neck and didn’t want to let go.
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The weeks went by. You clung to my legs at drop-off for a couple months.
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Although you never cried, some weeks I had to practically pull you off to get you to stay. Later, your teacher would tell me that within minutes of my being gone, your smile was back and you loved being at school.
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Each day I would wait for you outside the classroom with the other moms.
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Without fail, you came barrelling out of the classroom toward me. You ran with your arms wide and an even bigger smile on your face, “Mom!” You locked your arms around my legs and looked up at me. “Mom, you came back!”
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I tousled your hair, knelt down to meet your eyes, “Of course I did.”
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Last night I brought out the chalkboard to mark the occasion of your last day of school. I began filling it in, asking you who your best friend is, and what you want to be when you grow up. In September on your first day of school you said you wanted to be a ghost. Now you want to be “an ambulance guy.”
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I asked, “What’s your favorite part of school?”
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I expected to hear:
Snack time.
ABCs.
Playing with my friends.
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Instead you said, “When you pick me up.”
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I asked again, to be sure. “Your favorite part of school is when it’s done?”
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“Yup, and when you pick me up.” You looked at me with a big grin.
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I thought back to all the times you ran to me and wrapped your arms around my legs.
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I smiled, “It’s my favorite part too.”

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This post was originally shared on my Instagram, then was posted by Coffee + Crumbs.