Wednesday, July 11, 2012

Have Fun Storming the Castle

Yesterday afternoon, four of the parents came up to me on the premises of the Gan itself to let me know that they do support me, and that this incident represents the larger picture of the inadequacies of the discipline of the Gan for the last school year.  They want to start a revolution of sorts, with me as the standard bearer, and I told them that these last few days have been so traumatic, and I just want to put it behind me.  Some part of me might enjoy the burning of the castle, and the other part of me wants to move onto more positive times.

However, I won't lie;  the public show of support did me a world of good.

Straight from Gan, Raphaela and I went to the Orientation meeting of her school for next year.  The teachers, the atmosphere, and the communication with the parents reassured me that I have in fact made the right choice.  Raphaela warmed up to the room right away and explored, she played with play dough and markers, she went outside to their playground and made friends with one of the other girls her age.

At a certain point when the children were hearing a story book, the manager of the Gan took the parents aside and explained how we could best help our children adjust to a new place and a new experience in the Fall.  They had clearly put thought into the process, and as well - given my experiences of the past few days - I felt secure that the administration of the school was responsible and responsive to parents.

After the "special party," Raphaela and I went straight to the pool for her swimming lesson, and we both came home happy and tired.  I slept well last night.

The New York Times today printed an article apropos the beginning of sleep-away camp season, entitled, "Separation: Easier when practiced" by Perri Klass MD.  He spoke about home sickness at all ages, and how in fact it is the parents who determine the ease of the transition; it's not the most genius idea to say, "Have a wonderful time at camp, I don't know what I'll do without you."

Instead, homesickness and separation anxiety needs to be re-framed as a "reflection of love...Separations are temporary, these emotions are temporary."

1 comment:

Amy Charles said...

I think Perri's a she -- but in any case -- good, glad this is resolving well; also, yes, as one who's about to take her daughter to sleepaway camp in a few hours, it's best to *have* something to do and communicate it. "You'll have a great time! And so will I! We'll have fun telling each other about what happened, can't wait to hear it."