FIRST GRADE

I love a first day of school edition. Never fails to capture her joy, bravery, and elegance in the face of growth. We’ve been building up to this day at the bottom of the edition for a long time now, and she’s felt it. Today, she put on her little jumper and crisp white shirt for the first time—a dramatic shift from her laissez-faire, rainbow-themed apparel from kindergarten—and stepped out of the house for her first numbered year of school. There, among the big kids, she found her classmates (old and new) clustered near the edge of the playground-for-the-little-ones and gave them all big hugs. Her new teachers gave her a sticker with her name on it and she wandered off into the crowd with an ease we’ve come to expect, but which is entirely different from her demeanor at drop-off last year, when she sent us off longingly from inside the kindergarten fence. Today, she knew where she was, who she was, and how to navigate the place. Walking away was like drifting off to sleep.

Mommy and I went to get a coffee, looked at our pictures, and trusted the big kid in the beige jumper and yellow shoes to figure it out on her own.

Happy first day of school to all who celebrate.

dad