The Coming of Fall

Joe Fox in You've Got Mail..."Don't you love New York in the fall? It makes me wanto to go buy school supplies. I would send you a bouquet of newly sharpened pencils if I knew your name and address. On the other hand, this not knowing has its charms. "

Oh, I love that line. A bouquet of newly sharpened pencils. Three weeks ago, I hurled socks at the TV when the back-to-school commercials came on. But now, the rhythym of my spirit is starting to hit its autumn beats. I will enjoy these last two weeks of home-ness...which I say as I sit in my bed drinking coffee with the Today Show playing in the background, knowing that our trip to the Magical Pediatrician this afternoon will include ice cream at Wilburs and a stroll around Scituate Harbor. I will try to be totally present in these moments and work hard at relaxing, but when those fifty small souls walk through my classroom door on September first, I know I'll be ready. And when my two small daughters walk through their classroom doors on September first, it will be with new backpacks and new sneakers and new outfits that they've tried on fifty times, just to be sure. They'll be ready.

And because I'm dorky like that, I'll tuck in a tiny bouquet of newly sharpened pencils with a little "Happy First Day of Third/Fourth Grade" note.

This summer, while not without its moments, has not been what I had hoped. I need to try to cram in as much quiet time as I can for the next two weeks, but I also need to find a way to work harder at embracing the leisure time when I can find in during the Busy Six Months of my life. That's my goal for myself, and for my family, this year. I would like to plan for some day trips to pretty towns, bikerides, walks through the pretty conservation areas around my town, and more time together. Here's hoping. Fall has always felt more refreshing to me than spring somehow, so I'm using this as a new beginning for some recent unhealthy ways of thinking and feeling. I'm in need of a fresh start and a clear perspective.