Roots and Wings: Farewell Graduates

Dear Graduates,

In less than three weeks, you’ll be leaving the cocoon of high school and moving on to wherever the fates and FAFSA lead you.

We, (your parents), can already see the push-me-pull-you rite of passage beginning as you gather with those who’ve shared at least the last four years of your learning life: reminiscing grade school, middle school, and junior high antics, swapping stories of terrible and inspirational teachers, first loves and arch enemies. We watch you push away anything that may make you hesitate for an instant from taking the next big step into freedom.  

We hear snippets of conversations rising above tracts of Usher, Lady Gaga, Linkin Park and/or Phantom of the Opera, as you laugh about your freshmen follies, and collectively wonder where the jocks, mean girls, clowns, goths and nerds will end up. Time seems to move so slowly as you count the days to freedom, and yet you are amazed at how quickly your childhood seems to have sped by. 

Believe me when I tell you, we do understand. Hard to believe it, but we do. Your childhood seems to have sped by for us too. It seems like yesterday when we walked with you into kindergarten open house and saw all the construction paper hands with the names of the kids in your class arranged in a chain of friendship around the room. Who could have guessed, looking at those little hands joined together, how many would still call you “friend” all these years later.  How many of those little hands did the system let go? How many drifted away, dropped out…. 

How many shoeboxes, glue sticks and magazines did we cut up together? How many times did we study spelling words running to the bus? How many late evening raids of the book bag found homework you were certain didn’t need to be done?  

Was it that long ago that you learned how to swim, or hit a baseball? We remember watching soccer games -- the huge soccer balls knocking you and your tiny teammates over, slowly roll into somebody’s net amongst the cheers of  beaming grandparents and parents. We remember all the (softball, baseball, swimming, soccer, tennis, basketball, football, track, golf) games, and marching band competitions, rain or shine. How many snack bar hours did we work so you could get a t-shirt and matching socks?  How many parent friends did we make sharing countless hours setting up book fairs, pouring molten cheez -whiz over nachos, feeling the joy of victory and the agony of defeat? We own our “bleacher-butts” with pride as a sign of participatory parenthood.

It isn’t as easy as we thought for us to say goodbye to the years, the friends, the busy lives planned around the school calendar and your activities. So, be patient with us as we go through the same push-me-pull you rite. Allow us to reminisce, to laugh, to cry, because we’re sort of graduating too. And, this “roots and wings” stuff is hard.

P.S. We know where the jocks, mean girls, goths, clowns and nerds end up, sweetie…..they end up writing letters to their graduating seniors as they prepare themselves not to be too embarrassing as their kids walk on that stage to get their diplomas...

xo

Mom and Dad

Pat Schaefer is a proud parent, Edgewood resident and president of Edgewood Borough Council.