For many, yesterday was the first day of school. How many of them have you experienced? As a kid? An adult? A teacher?
Yesterday was my first day of school (at least my first day of a fall semester) at AACC. Students got there early, taking up all the good parking spaces, driving too fast, going the wrong way on a one-way street. Typical stuff. I got there early only because I’d heard there’d be a coffee truck on campus. (There was. I was their first customer. That’s how I roll.)
During my first half hour at the Reference Desk, I answered more directional questions than I’d had all summer. “Where’s the bookstore? Where’s the Academic Literacy office? Where’s my class? What’s the meaning of life? Why is there air? Who killed Jimmy Hoffa?” (Okay, those last three didn’t happen. At least not yet.)
People get anxious, nervous, stressed. I wasn’t any different.
On the way to my first day of teaching in 1985 in Meridian, Mississippi, I got stopped by a cop. (Great start, right?)
I wasn’t pulled over. A traffic cop put his hand out, looked me in the eye, then walked around to the driver’s side.
“Going a little fast, aren’t you?”
“Sorry, officer. It’s my first day at work.”
He stared hard, but I saw a little sympathetic look in his eyes, just for a moment. “You’ll get there. Take it easy.”
It’s a simple moment, nothing world-shaking, but it’s stuck with me all these years. The first day of school, a new job, a new town, a new life.. They’re all opportunities to wipe the slate clean and start over. We tell ourselves it’s important not to screw up, at least on the first day. But remember… Just chill. It’s going to be okay.
Sure, today’s post has nothing to do with movies, books, or the other things I normally write about. Just a thought to get you through your first day of school, work, marriage, whatever. Just chill. It’s going to be okay. And if you can, try to help someone that looks lost, confused, or searching for the meaning of life.
And feel free to share your first day of school stories, recent or ancient.
A good reminder, Andy. The Jimmy Hoffa reference made me laugh! That would be an impressive question. Being on the West Coast most of my life, we always started so late in September.