I guess I should start by saying that on a weekly basis, Jake’s preschool sends home a weekly announcement sheet on Friday that fills parents in on things like the lunch menu for the upcoming week or when they will have their annual Thanksgiving Feast and reminders like school picture orders being due by November 18th and to bring a warm coat since the weather is starting to feel more like Winter.
What? Bring a
coat? It’s not
that cold yet! But anyway, I’ll get right on that so when the time comes, Jake will nice and warm when he goes out to play.
Ummm…maybe not.
See, this past weekend, it just started to feel chilly to me in the mornings. But of course it was the weekend. So we just waited for it to warm up before going outside (and made a run for it when going in to church) which equals no coat-wearing was necessary. Then Monday rolled around. And I think the word Monday is all I have to say about that sentence. It came and went…and, you guessed it…still there was no coat for Jake at school. Tuesday morning came as quickly as Monday morning did, and I whipped into drop-off spot number 4 (like always because it’s right by the entrance to Jake’s classroom). We hopped out of the car and were greeted by Mrs. Susan, one of Jake’s two wonderful, loving teachers. I hadn’t much more than got completely inside the doorway when she asked me, “Does Jake have a coat that you could bring?” My response…Sure! Why do you ask?
She then proceeded to tell me that he mentioned how cold he was during his walk to the lunchroom the day before and when asked where his coat was, he said, “I don’t have one.” O.M.G.!! Right then and there, I felt completely abusive. I started thinking to myself: What kind of mother am I? Surely DHR can’t get involved for this one, right? Thank you for that, Jake! Can I fit under this table he’s sitting at to eat his breakfast? For the love of all things, that completely sounded like “the kid teacher’s feel most sorry for”. GASP! I was mortified! And the more I thought about it, the worse it all played out in my mind. I could see all of his classmates dressed in their warms coats that were neatly hanging on their coat hangers above their backpacks as she asked me, “Does Jake have a coat you can bring?” as they walked to the lunchroom. And then there’s Jake (probably at the back of the line making him even more noticeable, head tucked down, arms folded trying to keep himself warm), in his thin, long-sleeved t-shirt with a dinosaur riding a unicycle on the front, shivering, and telling his teacher he’s so cold and does not have a coat to wear. Oh my stinking gracious!
I got to work and called Jim. He was, for once in his life, as tall I was (exactly
two feet) and almost left right then and there to go purchase one just for him to wear at school (which is another reason I had not sent one with him yet because I hadn’t bought one that I could care less if it gets dirty or misplaced. And yes,
technically I should have said “Yes, he has a coat but not one I prefer to bring to school" when his teacher asked. It’s okay. I’ve already asked for forgiveness). Instead, I told him to stay put, and I would go buy one during my lunch hour.
And so all’s well that ends well of 1 o’clock yesterday when I had purchased exactly what I was looking for, and Jake proudly wore it this morning. I laughed with his teachers while he wouldn’t take it off - even to eat his Fruit Loops.
And finally…finally…I felt the anxiety lift like a weight off my shoulders, and I felt as proud as he did that he was sporting his very own, brand new, sparkling, red coat.
And may he never, ever say he doesn’t have a coat to wear. Because believe me! From now on, he always will!
