- All morning alarms are banned! Let the morning light and chirping birds rouse me tomorrow! In all reality, my little ones will try to wake me before dawn, and that’s OK- as long as it’s not a 5:45 buzzer I will be happy!
- How I missed you, comfy clothes! I will be wearing sweats all day- I mean ALL day. And I’m not stopping there. The hair is going up, the makeup is getting skipped, and everyone around me can thank me that I am still willing to brush my teeth in the morning, but it stops there! I’ve earned a day of not looking professional.
- My morning coffee will be consumed while hot- and while it is still before noon. No more lost coffee cups and so many distracting details that I don’t have time to finish it. But not today! Today I may even have two (hot) cups! This brings me to my next first day “to do” of the summer. It’s a good one….
- Today, I am going to (ahem) “powder my nose” whenever I want. That’s right, today and for the rest of the summer my bathroom breaks don’t have to be scheduled! Only we teachers can understand the luxury of unplanned bathroom breaks that allows for unlimited liquid intake! Two cups of coffee for me, please!
- All that running around in heels, leading my students upstairs, downstairs, fire drills, lunches, and office visits. Today, I am going to put my feet up and take a minute to mindlessly exist. I earned this Netflix binge with 10 months of nonstop, grueling “binge teaching.”
- With the afternoon well underway, it’s time to go enjoy the sunshine. Shall I take a walk, enjoy the park, or go for a stroll on the beach….perhaps nap in a hammock or a tree swing with the kids?
- Oh yes, the kids! Now I get to surround myself with my own kids instead of everyone else’s. These kids have been enjoying this lazy day with me after being overly scheduled these past 10 months. We have a lot of sun and fun days coming this summer as I trade in my teacher persona for stay at home mom. But today, I let them have at it- sleeping in, video games, swimming, napping, and TV. Yes, kids, you earned this day too!
- Back inside with my peepers open leads my thoughts to tomorrow’s plans. When is the last time I really deep-cleaned this house? Some do spring cleaning in the spring, but we teachers do “summer cleaning” because that’s when we have time… but let’s save it for another day.
- What is that pile of books in the corner of my closet? I did have good intentions on keeping up with the memory books this year. With no lessons to plan, all my creative abilities can be channeled into getting a year’s worth of pics into those books… tomorrow… but today… well, I’m still on the couch with my feet up.
- There is another pile of books in my bedroom left untouched all year: they are the books that I wanted to read for fun. With textbooks and student assignments off of my mind till September, I can finally read something just for me. I may even write something other than lesson plans!
- Not that I am being led by a clock today, but it must be getting close to dinner time. It’s been awhile since I have had time to really cook! Do I grab a cookbook, should I experiment, maybe a barbecue? With the seasons change, the demands on my time has slowed and with it, cooking can become fun again!
- After dinner I might call a friend- I might even venture out with a friend. Adult socializing is back! I waved my juvenile social interactions goodbye for the summer, and I get to rejoin adult society! Welcome back friends! I have time for you again! And welcome summer and all the wonderful things you have to offer!
And to all of my fellow educators with some time off this summer (alas, I know it’s not all of us!), enjoy, relax, refresh and drink deeply of your friends and family. You do important work and you deserve this!
- Jessica Cicalese Kurtz
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