It’s been a while so I thought an update would be in order. There is so very much to share but I think I would like to focus on Christopher’s new school year. This year has not been without it’s challenges. New school, new teacher, new class, new caregiver – just to name a few. It has been an adjustment but from my perspective, I thought he was handling it well. Until…..
Last week I got an email from his teacher. Christopher was acting out in school and misbehaved during a fire drill. They didn’t quite know how to handle this situation because it was so atypical of what they had seen during the first month of the year. A couple of emails and a phone call later, we determined that we would just need to ride this out. Christopher was having some difficulties adjusting to a situation at home and he was likely reacting to that at school.
Since that last phone call, there was one other email about Christopher not wanting to do his work. We all know that Christopher is allergic to work and this is more work than he has ever had to do before. The expectations are certainly higher now that he is in third grade. I was not terribly happy to hear that he was struggling. No parent would be – but, the road has never been a smooth one. This is just another bump.
And then when you least expect it…..
Today, another email. I looked at the email subject line for a long time before I opened it. The subject said “Today. I just wanted to let you know…..” Ugh! What now? Would it be more bad news? Truthfully, the only communication I have had via email from this teacher is to ask a question or communicate bad news. I’m sure that nothing good could possibly be included. So I sat there until I couldn’t take the suspense any longer.
Well, to say that I was surprised was an understatement. His teacher was emailing me to share what an amazing job Christopher did today during the fire drill. Other students even tried to distract him from appropriate behavior but he was having none of it. He followed the rules that were discussed with him last week and he did an amazing job! Honestly, this was not what I was expecting.
But, wow! It was so exciting to get a message that he was doing well! I was beginning to think that growth was on vacation. So much of what I have been hearing is negative or problematic. It was a relief that we could finally find a bit of growth…maybe more than a bit of growth. Remember, what seems like a baby step to most people is a tremendous step for our little ones.
Rewind a little to the weekend. Christopher’s birthday. And what a birthday it turned out to be. It was amazing to watch my little boy, who always needed Mama to organize his activities, take the lead with his friends. My heart was so full!!!!
The Take Away
What’s the lesson here? There’s always a lesson. I’m not sharing this just for the sake of sharing. I love to tell stories about my little boy, but more than that, I love to have a real life application.
Sometimes in life, we get so bogged down with the negative that the positive gets buried in the weeds. I’m sure that if I think about it, there has been tremendous progress over the past 6 weeks but yet, here I am, stuck on someone else’s view of my child. I am stuck on the opinion of a person who really doesn’t know him at all. This teacher is still learning what makes my child tick.
So what if he didn’t make a good choice last week? It doesn’t mean he won’t be making a good choice this week. Clearly, he made some excellent choices but Mama forgot to look at the entire picture instead of looking at one person’s perspective.
My friends, perspective is everything. We can wallow in the negative reports coming home or we can turn them around and say it will be better next time. As long as we, as moms, see the positives, we have won half the battle. Keep looking for growth no matter how small. It could be the difference between a successful week and a not so good week!!!
And, remember, you are never alone.
