Things Not To Tell T Until He is 18-#1

The Parent Category is Mom&Son Relationship. Subcategory: He Must be 18. Which sounds horrible I realize. I was sitting here this morning and something hit me like a ton of bricks. And with that realization came the notion that telling T I too had done these things would lead to him thinking that it was ok to wait until the end. I would like him to prepare before hand but…..me, him, two peas in a pod.

Yesterday T and I were talking about his day. And he is telling me that he has a report due today. And an art project. Also due today. Neither of which he had begun. The art project he figured we could go to Wal-mart get a cheap model and he will make slides with it. The other is his main project for year end. On Aerodynamics. Again unprepared. He will be using a paper airplane during the demonstration.

After he was finished telling me this, I looked at him and reminded him that both he and his teacher knew that I was not going to ride him about his school work. I am not going to nag about projects that need to be done. T knows where he wants to go and only he can get himself there. And that includes school work. I am not into doing T’s school work for him. I did my own, no need for me to repeat.

Now mom never nagged me about my school work. I was left to turn in my own school work. Study for my own tests. And I did. At the last minute. Every. Single. Time. Always. And I always pulled it out of the fire. Except for once. Grade 12 English paper on Hamlet. My metaphors were not cited because I came up with them. My teacher gave me a D originally and notations marked cite source? I went to see her after class and told her that I had not used any sources. I had come up with them on my own.

She took me out for coffee. I talked to her about my desire to be a writer. She informed me that I would be a good writer. That I was descriptive. Engaging. I had forgotten that until I began this anecdote. My grade was changed from a D to an A. I did not tell her that I had read the play and sat down and banged out my paper in twenty minutes or so. The night before. She received the one and only draft I wrote.

So I have created this new subcategory to remember these small things. That way when T is finished school I can have these at the ready for him. And I know the look I will get. Because it is the same one I would give.

June 8/22