Kindergarten Training

Carrie and I used to talk about how it would be to drop Miles off for his first day at Kindergarten. Well, now that he goes to the ABC Clinic for 4 hours each Tuesday and Thursday, the Kindergarten clock has accelerated. Each Tuesday and Thursday, I drop Miles off at the clinic and hope that his little kid lip and wet eyes don’t go south. I know it’s the simple longing, but I want him to meld right into his therapeutic environment and tear down the hall towards his tiny autistic pals. There are those days that he lumbers up the steps with his red lunch pail in hand and goes straight towards a red watering can to water his favorite plant out front. The plant is singed brown from neglect, but he likes to go through the ritual. Then, there are other days that he clings to my chest and simply won’t let go. These are the days that are excruciating. Once I have him pried off my chest, he begins the whimper as I leave towards the front door. I always explain to him that I will see him soon and that he is getting the good therapy he needs to be better. His level of comprehension is such that this usually soothes him and I’m off. All of this is just tidy practice for when I have to really drop him off for his first day of Kindergarten after all of these hours hopefully get our boy mainstreamed for regular kid school.