Tuition bill paid? Check.

Textbooks purchased? Check.

Flash drive ready to go? Check.

Software downloaded? Nope, not until I get paid. But otherwise, I’m ready for fall semester. I’m very excited about my classes this time around. No undergraduate students pretending to be “instructors.”

The boys? Not so much ready for the semester. JL has an excuse; he’s still in Pennsylvania and won’t be back until his first day of class. I’ve requested most of his textbooks from OhioLink, but I still need to run over and pick up his math book for him (which I am only doing because if we wait until he comes back, there’s less chance of getting it used). JM hasn’t even mentioned this semester. I worry about that. I worry that he’s just not ready for school at all and he absolutely HAS to do well this semester.

Actually, the worry isn’t so much that he’s not ready. I’m worried that he’s bothered about not being ready. It’s perfectly ok that he’s not ready, but he doesn’t realize that. I wouldn’t care if he opted to take a semester or two off, experienced life a little bit more, worked a few more unpleasant jobs to rule out what he doesn’t want to do. But he’s surrounded by friends who do seem to know what they want. And I think it’s frustrating and more than a little scary for him. He’s driven by this need to keep trying school, even though the classes he registers for aren’t interesting to him in the least.

There is a slight chance that this semester might be different. One of his classes is related to one of the areas he has expressed interest in before. So, I’m crossing my fingers and hoping for the best. Because it’s not a whole lot easier for me to see him stressing out than it is for him to be the one stressing out.

Share This