Lots of people wait for January 1st to formulate resolutions, but for me, Labor Day's all about new beginnings. Even at 57 (soon to be 58!!), the last holiday of the summer brings back memories of anticipation. Anticipation of a new school year, which meant:
New clothes
New teacher
New subjects
New students
New notebook
New NEW NEW!
Opportunities everywhere for THIS TIME doing things differently.
On the night before the first day of school, I agonized over which of my new outfits to wear. At this stage of the year, they hung neatly in my closet, probably in some kind of pecking order--favorite to least favorite.
On the first day, I'd eagerly jump on the school bus, happy to see friends I hadn't seen all summer. I'd sashay down the aisle, waving at everyone, exulting in the buzz of excitement that underlay just a smidge of apprehension. (After all, first days have their downsides!)
Upon entering class, I'd be exceedingly polite to my new teacher (yes, I proactively aspired to the role of "teacher's pet.") And I'd scan the new classroom walls, taking in the murals and posters, excited about these signs of the learning to come.
Finally, I'd find my assigned seat, swing behind the desk, and place my notebook before me.
Ah......the new notebook.
Nothing cooler.
Its cover unscarred by meaningless doodles...its corners unfrayed by wear. And best of all, the inside of the notebook. All neatly sectioned off by tabbed dividers, protecting the fresh pages of paper not yet scribbled on.
I LOVED a fresh notebook.
And each year, I SWORE, that by the end of the year, the notebook would closely resemble its original form, the only difference being that the pages inside would now be filled with organized lessons, notes, essays--whatever the subject demanded.
Oh, I had a plan. Every year I had a plan.
THE PLAN was that each day, I'd go home after school, sit at the desk in my room, and carefully do my homework before watching any television. I would keep my lessons up-to-date and my reading assignments completed ahead of time.
I would not only be a good student, I would be AN ORGANIZED STUDENT.
* * * * * * S I G H * * * * *
Yeah, right.
You know how THAT turned out every year, huh?
But still...today is Labor Day. As I write this, a plumber is installing a new toilet (I guess the adult version of new beginnings).
Think I'll run out and buy a new notebook.
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3 comments:
You should. I keep about a dozen in various forms, just in case a new story strikes my fancy and I need to jot down my idea. My plan is one notebook for each book, but somehow I end up with the wrong notebook when I get an idea for a scene in another book, so they all end up jumbled with bits and pieces. But it's all good.
Definitely go buy a new notebook. Some of them are too pretty to use. LOL!
Those notebooks are on sale now. I always loved a new notebook, too. Full of promise.
Hey, Randy,
I always had all sorts of plans for schools too. Need I say that most of them never worked out quite the way I wanted them to?
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