And we’re off! (Photo credit: Wikipedia)
September is like a fresh bowl of cereal when you are craving carbs. You pour the milk in anticipation, smiling and salivating a little as it dances on the flakes or “O’s” in the bowl. As you do this you are distracted: a door slams, or there is a child’s cry in the next room, or the dog pushes against your leg unexpectedly as he is licking the floor clean around your feet. You look away and the milk – previously choreographed – is now gushing and overflowing the bowl. The cereal is now overly saturated and has lost its appeal. September quickly gets out of hand.
It is the start of the second week of school. Technically it is only the fourth full day of school and today I wish the Force was with me. My son is a hyper-sensitive guy both physically and socially. If his socks aren’t on the right way he will stomach it and get to school and have his school day, but the moment he gets home all that bottled-up rage and frustration (mostly at not being able to fix the situation or know how to control it) erupts. Or if someone suggests something to him that he can’t understand, the idea that what he has done gets misinterpreted as being wrong and the suggestion becomes a punishment. Most of the time it’s not something I can logically explain or even understand. I am sensitive to noise and I’m easily overwhelmed, but we could all admit to this to some degree.
Today was such a day. It’s the little things that can sometimes set him off, but what the cause is can be inconsistent. Today I asked him to perhaps leave his lovely hand-written notes on the kitchen counter, instead of plastered to the front door. The front door is visible from the sidewalk as you walk by. It is also visible from the street and the bus route. When I drove home the sign made me smile, but I can’t trust everyone and can’t expect everyone will do good by my child. I made this suggestion out of safety, not that he had done anything ‘wrong.’
He erupted and it took me a good 1.5 hours to deal, defuse, overcome, silence, recover, and regain control of the situation. At the end of an already rough Monday (very little sleep, not ever enough coffee) this was my top out to my day.
Perhaps the fifth day of school will be better.
iRuniBreathe 