The Over-Seasoned Parent

I went to back-to-school night at Charlie's school on Wednesday night. Despite forewarning, he wasn't thrilled by my unusual evening absence, and all the more as Jim had come home late due to a meeting.

So I sped up to the school and, finding almost every place taken and most spots on the curb, left the white car nicely positioned right on the side of the driveway out.

Two other parents and I hurried into the hall and were faced with the 'cafeteria or classroom first' dilemma. It had been 'cafeteria first' last year and we wrongly concluded thence it should be this year...... No.

Charlie has the same teacher for a third year in a row (happily) and is in the same room. There are nine young men total in his class and at least two are older than Charlie -- 18, 19. Their mothers talked about guardianship and we all chimed in about when our sons' birthdays were and how soon they would see school district services end on turning 21.

I had already met all of Charlie's aides except the one who is half in his class and half in another. Charlie has speech and OT and vocational training, as before. He only has music and art every other week instead of every week.

I scanned the rows in the cafeteria to see if some parents were there. Their son and Charlie had been in the same classroom about twelve years ago when we lived elsewhere in New Jersey. Jim texted that Charlie was uttering a 'Mommy Mommy Mommy' refrain. I talked to an aide who'd been one of Charlie's when he first came to the school was it already five years ago? -- the aide has worked at the pool ever since and told me Charlie had enjoyed swimming in the morning.

Very glad I was that I had parked the white car strategically on the way out.