But I don’t
want to go to School
by
Judy
It is back-to-school time
again. For reasons unknown to me my last child did not like school. My other
children welcomed the opportunity to get out of the house, socialize with their
friends, and perhaps gain some knowledge. Not so David. I don’t remember at
what age he began throwing the tantrums each morning. I just remember the
battles.
“David, is your homework in
your bag?” I asked.
“No, can you help me with
it?”
“David, are you dressed and
ready for school?” I asked. There was no answer. “David, are you out of
bed?” There was still no answer. “Don’t
make me come in there,” I warned--all to no avail.
Each morning I entered his
room, threw back the covers, pulled him out of bed, and led him to the
breakfast table. He enjoyed breakfast. He did not like dressing for school. “I
don’t like this shirt and these jeans don’t feel right. I’m not wearing them,”
he said.
“Okay, how about these?” I
said and held up another pair of jeans and his favorite shirt.
“No, I’m not going to school
today,” David screamed with flailing arms and stomping feet.
Thus began the negotiating
for the day. I’m happy to report I won most mornings. Oh sure, there was that
one morning I paid him $5.00 if he would go to school without the tantrum. The
older kids have forgiven me now, although it took them about twenty years to do
so.
I don’t remember my first
child, or even child number two or child number three presenting their cases
against going to school so strongly. If they did, I stopped the tantrum in its
early stages. I was stronger and not nearly as tired back then. Working full
time and keeping up with four kids, a dog, a cat, and a workaholic husband kept
me tired—very, very tired. Oh, yes, it was easier to pay the kid to go to
school than to argue with him.
Turned out it was a good
experience to pay the kid. It kind of prepared me for those tuition checks
later in his life. While he never reached a time when he actually enjoyed
school, there were a few days in high school which he enjoyed. They were mostly
the days with an early dismissal time. There were also college days which he
enjoyed. But none of those days were as happy as the day he graduated from
college. Oh yes, that was a happy day, not only for him, but for his dad and
me, too. We were pretty tired of writing those tuition checks.
