Memorial Day is less than a week away. You know what that means; summer is nearly here. This [school] year is truly flying by, and I am at once nostalgic, overwhelmed, and ecstatic about the onslaught of changes that are riding on my heels. Por ejemplo:
1. My first class of sixth graders moves on from our little school next month, graduating to high schools all over Brooklyn and Manhattan. They were so little when I was their teacher just a few years ago. Now they are teenagers about to turn a major page in their lives. In a lot of communities around the country, the transitions from elementary to middle to high school are not such a big deal. In New York City, there are a myriad of factors in kids' lives that change at warp speed during these points - your school, your friends, your commute, your uniform, to name just a few. When this group of kids came to us, most of them had been considered the shining stars of their old schools and classes, and with good reason. That transition is difficult, but now they're so much smarter and so much better. I hope that they go through the same process smoothly in ninth grade, and that they continue to be pushed and challenged by their schools and their peers. I can't believe they're leaving.
2. We are moving to Queens. Our new lease has been signed and we will say goodbye to Kings County (at least as our place of residence) in about a month. Our new neighborhood is quiet, residential, and green. The New York City rental market is a rapid enterprise, so we essentially decided on this apartment in the blink of an eye when we saw the kitchen. Needless to say, I am slightly apprehensive about the process of moving, as well as the new, traffic-encumbered drive to work. Like many, I am a creature of habit, resistant to change of many kinds and happy to be settled into a predictable routine. Upsets to the delicate balance I've created are not necessarily welcome, even when they are necessary or beneficial. Nevertheless, the new apartment is quite satisfactory and I am excited to settle into a new routine with a new borough as the homestead.
3. The wedding is very fast approaching. Last night I had a strange and alarming dream in which we were a week before nuptials and it came to my attention that invitations had somehow never been mailed. I realize in my awake state that this doesn't make sense, as I would have suspected a problem earlier due to lack of RSVPs, and my dream never addressed whether this accident was my fault or his, which I also looked back on with perplexity. Whatever, it was a dream. The point is that (back to the dream state now) I did not feel nearly as anxious as would be considered normal over such a massive glitch, and I simply told Mike to call everyone, apologize, and ask if they were coming. As my dream self, the consuming emotion I experienced was not stress, worry, or panic, but rather anticipation. It was not the kind of anticipation that ails you when you want to get something over with, it was the sort that you feel when the whole world appears to be at your fingertips. So this is how I woke up in the morning, with an eager composure and delight that assures me: amidst the end of year madness, the upcoming move, and the impending wedding planning crunch, life is generally great.
No comments:
Post a Comment