Three, two, one, zero, BLAST-OFF: It's the first day of school

Earlier I wrote about the two-week countdown to First Day of School and then again about the six-day countdown to First Day of School, and now here we are at zero days. Blast-off.

Yesterday I kept thinking of December 24th. I had that same sense that I get the day before Christmas of wanting everything to be perfectly organized and in place before the Big Event. On December 24th, it’s a matter of having every present wrapped and labeled, every Christmas Day delicacy prepared and ready to be baked or sliced or steamed; yesterday the issue was having both kids’ backpacks packed, crossing off every school supply on the list, snacks wrapped, water bottles chilled. And yesterday as on Christmas Eve, I wanted it not only all organized, in place and ready to go but I also wanted all the mess that our frenzy of activity created cleaned up. I wanted surfaces bare and supplies put away where they belonged.

And yesterday, as on Christmas, that was an unrealistic hope. On Christmas Day, despite my best efforts, we so often leave the house with rolls of wrapping paper on the dining room table and dirty cooking dishes stacked in the sink, despite my dreams of a picture-perfect home, clean and tidy, awaiting our return on Christmas night. Yesterday, too, I managed to get through all the important tasks as far as having the kids ready to leave for school today, but I didn’t get all the laundry folded, I didn’t get their rooms tidied, I didn’t have the mail sorted. The first day of school feels like a fresh start, and I wanted my home to reflect that fresh start, but this morning that’s not exactly the case. I still have plenty of picking up to do while they’re off at school. But then again, I also have more than six hours in which to do it.

I think what both experiences – Christmas and First Day of School – serve to remind me is that unless you work for NASA, you cannot expect to execute a perfect countdown. Zero blast-off is never immaculately conducted, leaving nothing but a wisp of smoke in its wake. There will always be wrapping paper and dirty mixing bowls left behind, or plastic packaging from new binders mixed up with empty shoe boxes and sandwich makings. Focusing on the task at hand – school supplies, lunches, leaving the house on time – should be enough for the first day of school.

It just doesn’t matter that much if I don’t hit every goal exactly on the head at the moment the kids leave for their first day of school. There’s still time to pick up after they leave. And there are other years ahead to improve upon the first-day-of-school countdown, too.

Besides, realizing every task can’t be scratched off the list by nine o’clock the night before school starts helps me remember to focus on what’s important: that we had a happy, healthy summer, that the kids had a lot of fun during their time off from school, and that both of them seem primed and ready to start the next grade level. And if I need further reminders of what’s important, I have a treasured image from yesterday to clue me in. In the middle of the afternoon, Tim and Holly collected money from their piggy banks and, with my permission, rode their bikes together to the ice cream stand down the street. Together they sat there drinking their chocolate frappes, and then they biked back home.

More than anything else, this image will stick with me from the last day of summer vacation: the two of them being resourceful and happy and independent together, enjoying each other’s company, biking, savoring a treat. Never mind the messy house. With the countdown down to zero, we accomplished everything that really matters for today.