first day of school

My son (who is NOT the kid in this picture) started Kinder 2 yesterday. It's his second year in his school so I didn't think it would be emotional for him. But the night before, he prayed, "Dear Jesus... Please let me wake up very early tomorrow, before the sun is up and the sky is blue... Please let me not be shy. Please let me have a friend..." Awww, turns out he was feeling some anxiety and just wasn't showing it.

There is something about the first day of school that tugs at your heart as you realize your baby is growing up. Throughout the last schoolyear, I would get wistful watching Noah get down from the car, with his duffel bag slung cross-body, and walk towards the doors of his school. This vision of independence always came with melancholy because my little boy seemed like a little man going out into the big world (with a big bag) on his own. This week, what got me was the realization that he was just trying to be a big man this past month when he gave me a cheery "Yes!" every time I asked if he was excited to go back to school.