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Back to School Blues

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Contributed by: Dianne Lorang on 8/4/2008

It's that time of year again when all the back to school ads come out. And I've got the blues. Not because I have to take the kids shopping and spend money I don't have on school supplies, but because my kids are long grown up. I remember how I couldn't wait until summer came to an end and I'd have the house to myself again, at least those years I wasn't working or going to college myself.

Oh, how I wasted that time wishing for an empty nest. It went by way too fast, even though the summers seemed endless. Especially the hot ones like this year when we'd get cabin fever sequestered inside in the air conditioning. Actually, my family spent more time waiting out winter storms since we lived in Montana most of the school years, with a few years in Colorado thrown in for variety.

One year was so cold from a storm that came from Alaska that they even shut down the university, which had never happened before. The windchill was -70, so it was dangerous to go out. We spent our days watching movies, when we had power, and playing Chinese checkers. The kids still hate that game. We would stoke both wood stoves and eat from a pot of stew that I kept adding to as the days piled up like the snowdrifts.

We lost track of time. Dinner got later and later until the last night we ate about 11:00. It didn't seem to matter. Normally the kids had strict bedtimes, even as teenagers. I didn't care if they went to sleep, just that they went to their beds to read or, when younger, play with toys. I needed time alone, especially since my husband traveled on business two weeks out of every month.

Now I have plenty of time alone. Even though my husband is retired, the house is fairly quiet. And I have no tight schedule since I don't have a "real" job. So I'm missing those back-to-school days, not because the kids will be out of my hair, but because every day, every season, had a pulsating purpose to the passage of time.

So I feel left out when I see all the back-to-school ads, and yet I'm content to know that each of my children graduated from college and is happy in their careers. The oldest has just begun the school routine with our granddaughter starting Montesorri this month. With that, she is carrying on the tradition that I took for granted when I was in the midst of living it.

Maybe that is why we should learn to live in the NOW, so when we look back, we don't regret not fully participating or appreciating the little things that mean so much when we no longer have them. I am always reminded of what my son told me when he didn't make the baseball team in high school after years of little league and all-star teams: "It's over, Mom. Just accept it."

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CONTRIBUTOR INFORMATION

Dianne Lorang

Littleton , CO

Dianne Lorang has posted 92 stories and 1 comment since joining on 9/9/2007. Dianne Lorang 's average story rating is 5.

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