I’ve challenged my 6th graders to a Slice-A-Day during our winter break…I will attempt to keep up with the challenge as well!
Dear School Bag,
Don’t stare at me like that. I will try to empty you after the kids go to bed. Maybe.
Nobody wants to go to bed. I don’t blame them. After one more sleep, winter vacation is over. H says, “That’s it! Then we will have to wait an entire year before another winter break!” And I remember how long years were when I was a kid. Now the days are sometimes long… but the years are so very short. I know that next thing we know, it will be next Christmas.
It’s bedtime, but the kids are busy. They are reconstructing the MacGyver episode they just watched. MacGyver. Yep. I can’t tell if they like the time at home with their family, or just the amount of tv we’ve let them watch. I know I was busy playing games with the kids, writing on my computer, and reading books in the family room. I’m sorry I didn’t pay more attention to you during this vacation.
Oh School Bag – you might remember that I did open you briefly at the beginning of vacation. This was before I shoved you in the corner of the dining room. Somehow, you are still full of things I should have done. A stack of papers to grade, some paperwork to fill out… I hope you have enjoyed your vacation. Tomorrow we go back to school!
As usual, it feels like just as we are finally into the swing of a school break, just as I finally forgot that you were sitting half unzipped behind the buffet, break is over. Just as I have gotten relatively on top of the dishes situation…I had to pack lunches again. (You may have noticed that I slipped a bag of gluten free crackers in your small pocket a bit ago. I’ll take those out when we get to school) Just as I finished the last load of laundry… just kidding, I never finish laundry. There is no “last load” of laundry. Even you know that. I think there’s a cardigan somewhere in your bottom.
Now you are here at the table with me, as I hide in the dining room, waiting for the MacGyver conversation to fade a bit. I finally took the Literary Essay Unit of Study book from your grasp, and when I give it back to you, it will have a few more post-it notes stuck inside.
Hopefully I won’t fall asleep too long snuggling kids to bed tonight, but if I do – I’ll take the grading out of your grip first thing during our planning period tomorrow. I promise.
Love,
Mrs. Thought
On a Thought 
This just cracked me up. My first day back is tomorrow. I looked at my bag this evening lamenting that I hadn’t gone through the stack of paper I had collected in the last few months. Most of it is likely insignificant, but I needed to go through to see if there was anything I should keep. I’ll be headed back to school tomorrow with the stack still inside. I guess we shouldn’t bring bags home.
I loved the voice of your piece. These two lines were full of truth: “I remember how long years were when I was a kid. Now the days are sometimes long… but the years are so very short.”
Cathy