Dear Sweet Ryan,
Here we are. The night before kindergarten. 5 years and 8 months ago we brought you into the world. Tomorrow, your daddy and I will walk you into your elementary school for the first time. Through all the milestones of your life thus far, we have celebrated, laughed, clapped, jumped up and down, and even cried. With each one, you become smarter, more aware of the world around you and more confident. Kindergarten will be no different. I am so proud of the young man you have become. You are smart, polite, generous, empathetic, fun-loving, sensitive, genuine, analytical, cognizant. I could go on.
There are some things I will promise you about this first year of school.
1. I promise you will remember it. You will remember the smell of your kindergarten classroom, even when you're 30. There will be certain smells, sights and sounds that will take you back to this time of your life. You will remember the excitement and anticipation you will feel as you're walking into that building tomorrow. Cherish it. It goes by so fast.
2. I promise your teacher (and all your teachers, actually) loves you. Teachers are gifts. Treat them as such. It takes a very special person to want to spend 180 days of their year with a room full of 5 and 6 year olds. They love what they do, and they love you.
3. I promise you there will be that one kid that gets under your skin. You won't like this child, and that's ok. You don't have to like everyone, but you will play nice.
4. I promise you will learn. A LOT! There are a few things you have been concerned with not knowing. "I can't read" is a common phrase we hear from you lately. You will learn to read along with many many more exciting things!
5. I promise you will LOVE kindergarten! You will make friends that you will keep for the rest of your life. You will learn lessons and have experiences that will continue to mold you into the man you will be.
I'm not going to lie, I have teared up over all the little things leading up to your first day; your last day of preschool, your first day of summer camp, driving by the school in the morning on the way to work. I even cried when I washed and folded your preschool nap time blanket for the last time. Instead of putting it back in your preschool bag, I put it in the closet and that just tore me to pieces. You'll just have to put up with me and my antics. You're my first. I was my parents' first, so I will apologize in advance for my overly-paranoid thoughts and actions you will be subjected to as you go through the next 13 years of school. Fortunately for you, your father is the baby of three. He tries very hard to bring me back to earth.
Why is this so bittersweet for me, you might ask? You've been in preschool since you were a year old. This school thing is nothing new for you. You adapt well, your extremely sociable, and you make friends easily. The fact is, kindergarten marks the end of an era; an idea that you need me for everything. It marks the beginning of the end of your childhood innocence. By the time you graduate from elementary school, you will know things that I didn't know until I was in high school. You will see and hear things that I have been able to shield you from until now. This is what happens over time. Children grow up faster than their parents did.
With all that said, I am so excited for you, my love. You are brilliant and you will do so well. Remember to always be open to learning, always be open-minded, treat your peers the way you want to be treated, remember your manners, ENJOY this fabulous time of your life and never deny me a hug!
I love you all the way around all the planets and back!
~Mommy
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