back to school

Let’s play a little word association — when I say “Back to School,” what do you think of?

Seventeen magazine’s annual homage to cute sweaters, trendy jeans, and must-have boots? The excitement of sniffing new markers? Fall leaves crunching underfoot? New classes, new friends, new beginnings?

Back to school for me is like a phantom limb. I remember so well what that eager anticipation felt like, but it’s been eons since there’s been any delineation of time of year and related sensations. Part of it I can blame on my geographic location (Southern California, where I live, is notorious for year-round good weather and I, the eternal New Englander, yearn for humidity and thunder storms like a wilted flower), but most of it has to do with the reality of modern life.

Like hopped-up gerbils, we and our kids frantically spin the wheel of duty, obligation, and responsibility. We churn like butter, regardless of solstice or season. There’s always a summer reading list, packets to be completed, and standardized test prep joints teasing us like industrious gigolos with lower prices on their summertime packages. read more