6:00 AM
I usually make a coffee at this time, then wake up Henry around 7:15. By 7:30 AM, I am usually ripping off the covers, throwing clean socks and pants at him to put on.
This morning was a little different.
I turn my alarm off and stay in bed. I’m awake, but I don’t want to get out of bed just yet. Not looking forward to the whole routine today.
7:00 AM
Henry quietly creeps into my room, trying not to wake me up. Without looking at him I say “I’m up Henry.” I wanted to praise him for being awake all by himself, so I sit up in bed. When I look over at him, he’s fully dressed for school and says, “You know what motivated me to waking up? Video games.”
I replied, “I don’t have a problem with you playing video games after all your chores are done. I’m really happy to see you woke up and dressed yourself—you look really nice by the way. Why don’t you make a bowl of cereal to eat, brush your teeth, then you can play video games until the bus gets here.”
Then I laid back down. No, wait, I actually motioned for him to give me a hug first. I was happy for both of us. So, he goes into the kitchen and bangs around spoons and bowls until I hear him crunch his cereal. At this point I dragged myself out of bed in what seemed to be some sort of dream-state. I couldn’t believe there was no fussin’ or fightin’ while adjusting my “how-many-minutes-until-the-bus-arrives” calculation. I inadvertently walked in a few circles—through the kitchen, the dining room, the living room, the kitchen again—not really knowing what I should do next.
I made his lunch, P.B. & J. Then I made myself a coffee.
I sat next to Henry playing his video games and sipped on my hot coffee. I looked over my left shoulder to the clock on the microwave—it was 8:02 AM.
8:20 AM
Usually I get alerts on my phone when the school bus is kinda nearby. I looked at my phone and there was no alert. We were a teeny bit early, so I didn’t sweat it. We moved to the garage to put our shoes on and walk to the bus stop.
8:24 AM
Something didn’t feel right. I pulled my phone and looked at that Bus Tracking app. It said…offline. Then I remembered, it’s a Teacher’s Workday. I said, “Henry…you don’t have school today.”
He smiles and says, “Oh yeah, I remember Mrs. Marinello told us yesterday!” We hugged in the front yard, turned around and went back into the garage to take our shoes off and go back inside.