The last ‘first day of school’

On August 16, I sent my youngest off to school for the first day of his senior year. It doesn’t matter that he is 17. I still gave him a hug and a kiss and told him that I loved him. That was followed by first-day-of-school pictures on our front porch and a video. Then came his dad and I waving goodbye as he drove away, watching him drive down the street until we could no longer see his taillights. The first day of school is a big deal.

This was Elijah’s last first day of school and our last first day of school as a family. After 17 years of first days between my two kids, it is hard to believe this is it. This marked the last time I would send a child off for the first day of school.

I clearly remember Elijah’s first first day of school. He was 4 years old and starting K4. From that very first day and all the first days in between, how did we get to this last first day so quickly?

Every year as we inched toward the start of a new school year, I would always find myself wondering where the summer went. Did we do everything we wanted to? A sadness would drift over me as I realized the more carefree days of summer had come to an end. The first day of school makes me a little sad, too. I felt a little bluer this year than other first days, given that it was our last.

As my kids have gotten older, the back-to-school to-do list has gotten shorter. There is less paperwork to fill out and fewer school supplies to buy. Long gone are the days of heading to the store with a long list of mandatory supplies requested by the school. But it was kind of fun picking out a new backpack, fresh sets of markers and crayons, notebooks and folders of every color, among other things back in the day.

Elijah actually did pick out a new backpack this year, and it was not what you would expect for a kid his age. It’s bright blue with shark fins sticking out of the sides and shark teeth decorating the front. It also features a shark zipper pull. This is something fun the seniors at his school do — they buy little kids’ backpacks for hauling their stuff around with a bit of whimsy. I still haven’t figured out how he is going to safely transport his laptop back and forth to school each day in it.

My kids have always gotten to pick what we have for dinner on the first day of school. It has ranged from going out for pizza to staying in and making homemade spaghetti and meatballs. This year, Elijah picked hamburgers on the grill and mac n’ cheese. I always enjoy hearing how that first day went — from details about their different classes to which friends are in their classes to what their teachers are like.

A year from now, Elijah will have another first day of school, but I won’t be there for that. It will be his first day of college, however, it won’t be celebrated with pictures and videos and waving goodbye in the driveway.

Instead of thinking about that right now though, I’m going to savor each moment of his senior year and all the ‘lasts’ this year holds — the last football games, the last homecoming dance, his last season of lacrosse, his last prom. I’m sure we will make many unforgettable memories. Big decisions will be made this year too, in particular, where he will choose to attend college.

 If you have kids to send to school in the coming weeks, relish what you have left of summer, and relish the school preparations that are part of this time of year as well — even if it can seem like a lot of work and makes your heart a little heavy. And last but not least, enjoy every first day of school because those years go by so fast.