Summer, I Begged for Thee

While sitting across from my colleague at a local restaurant, the words “I can’t wait for summer to be over” flow out of my mouth like butterflies and into my coworkers’ ear where they return back to their youthful state. She was in shock because the last two months of school, I was begging for a chance to come up from under the water and breathe. Now that I have air, I feel more suffocated than ever before.

Summer is great; however, I do not like the idleness it brings. It is like riding a bike for ten months and stopping to walk for the next two months. It was like experiencing an early retirement where I enjoyed not having to join the rat race, again, but I really missed it. Like Robert De Niro in the movie The Intern, I was use to a daily routine, and without it,I am almost lifeless. It can take a few months to break a habit, and this one was not breaking easy or at all for a few reasons:

1. I am still getting up at the same time every day. I try to close my eyes and go back to sleep, but I can’t because my body is still telling me, “You have somewhere to be.”

2. While drinking my morning cup of tea, I check my work e-mail out of habit looking for my new class list, and an e-mail from my administrator with the green light to setup my classroom.

3. I miss setting my alarm and hearing it go off every morning. (That's weird. I know.)

4. When I walk into a store, I am still looking for teaching supplies. I think to myself, "Oh that basket, would look nice in my classroom." The next thing I know, I went in for milk and came out of the store with a basket full of teaching supplies for next year and no milk.

5. On Sunday nights, I am still wanting to write lesson plans or grade papers, while watching my favorite show.

6. I find myself watching the clock for the perfect time to go to the bathroom. Then my brain nicely tells me, "Hey, we are on vacation, so please go now."

Summer is like a break up for teachers. For some teachers, the break up is easy, but others struggle looking for a fresh start. Anxious for what the new school year is going to bring even if we know it will be challenging.

Summer

Summer, I begged for thee!

Now, that you are here, I feel so lost.

In fall, I was so happy because new beginnings were happening

like new students, supplies, and holidays galore.

In winter, I was ready to spring into a break.

In spring, I was begging for thee,

so I could recuperate.

Now it is summer, and all I can think is:

How do I cope?

As I sit here, anxiously, waiting for you to be gone.