I have a kid in high school...say what?

Lewie, yes my little Lewie, my baby boy, my sweet angel from heaven, started high school this month. He was looking forward to it all summer long, and truly, I thought I was ready. Really...I did. We went to the high school parent orientation, the tour, and even to several sporting events (mostly to see his cousin Sarah), and each time, I went with excitement for the "next chapter." Not forced excitment--real excitement.

Then, August 28th came, and I wanted to bury myself under the covers. Couldn't we all just have another day, week, or month of summer? Why did the middle school years have to end? I was just getting used to the whole awkward, voice-changing, pimple-popping, hormonal years of middle school. Now he would be entering the mysterious vortex of adulthood with all the complexities of dating, driving, and decision-making. After his first week, he reported back that the bathrooms were filled with aerosol mist from vaping, and the winding hallways led to the occasional corner fight or makeout session. A note from the principal also reminded us that the possession of marijuana at school (in addition to other drugs) was another concern.

Yes, on that first day of high school I had to let go of a piece of me--the piece that wants to nurture, control, and protect my little boy.  I still faithfully set my alarm for 5:30 a.m., so I can prepare his breakfast and lunch before watching him get picked up by the school bus at 6:30 a.m. But things are different. My son battles me about wearing a jacket when it's raining or cold outside, and I can only watch him get on the bus in secret through the living room window. (He would absolutely die if I ran out there to give him a jacket while he's getting on the bus. Teenagers aren't supposed to have moms...well visible moms. Still, I am tempted to do it one day. He'll forgive me...when he's forty.) 

Two weeks after Lewie's first day, I attended "Meet the Teacher Night." My husband wasn't interested in moving around to eight different classes, so he skipped it, but he still wanted to know my assessment. Lewie has Graphic Design I, Geometry, English, World History, Biology, Spanish II, Gym, and a class called Advisory. They are split between "A" days and "B" days, so the classwork is manageable, but I still was impressed with all the walking he has to do in a single day to get to each class. In some cases, the bell would ring before I made it. I was climbing three flights of stairs to the gym (our high school is built into a mountain), and then rushing back to the ground floor for Spanish. Then, I was back to climbing another two flights for Biology... His teachers seemed structured yet nuturing, and each used their six minutes of "talk time" to address the individual topics they cared about the most. There was no room for questions. The bell abruptly ended their speech, and off we went like lost sheep to the next classroom. There were definitely some quirks with the room numbers and the stairwells, so on numerous occasions, I had to stop to ask where I could find a classroom. Thankfully, for the first six classes, I had another mom friend to tag along with.

Now, we are past the one month mark, and Lewie has fallen into a routine. He had his freshmen year photo, and I'm diligently looking at details for a possible high school trip to Costa Rica in the spring. (Since the school opened in 2001, there has only been three of these trips, so I know that if Lewie doesn't go this year, he won't have another chance before he graduates.) I have told him that he needs to join at least one club or activity to which he is still groaning: "I thought I could wait until my junior or senior year." I recognize that as a kid that loves video editing and computers, he's not going to gravitate toward sports or the chess club, but I want him to get involved in "SOMETHING." Yes, my "control" is limited now that he is a teenager, but I'm still not out of the game. My new slogan is "Mom knows best." (I say this with the utmost confidence, not letting on that this new high school vortex has me terribly confused. Do I know best? I know one thing for sure. These are the years when teenagers will often not listen to their 'wise' parents and inevitably have to learn from their own mistakes. I know because even though I'm old, I still remember those mistakes.)

So for now, I'm adapting and reminding myself to savor these years because college will be next. Yes, it can be hard to have a perpetually tired, hungry, know-it-all in the house, but it's even harder when that presence goes away, and to be honest, my son is still this amazingly sweet kid; it just gets clouded when the teenage hormones kick-in. Now I'm getting ready for what the next month brings...Parent-Teacher-Night, high school football games, and homecoming. Oh boy!