And we’re off!
I look a little apprehensive on the first day of school.
Well, I’m off again, leaving tomorrow for Texas. Yee-haw!!
Like the readers of my books, my summer vacation is over and I’m heading back to school. School visits, that is. It’s a bittersweet transition for me, as it is for students and teachers alike. On the other hand, three-year old granddaughter Remy started preschool yesterday and LOVED-LOVED-LOVED it.
After a punishing travel schedule from January to June of this year, I was delighted to be home all summer! My husband went to Massachusetts for a week to visit his sister (and see other family members), I stayed put, working on a new Humphrey book - a different kind of book, by the way.
And while I look forward to the schools, traveling won’t be quite the same. Charges for a checked bag, the airlines canceling my flights and giving me extremely inconvenient substitutes, etc. We all have to suffer.
Still, I’m always energized when I see those young faces and get to talk to teachers and media specialists and poke around school libraries.
I’m flying to Waco tomorrow and will speak at Midway Intermediate School on Friday. Then heading to Houston and The Woodlands. I will speak at The John Cooper School there on Monday but will get to spend the weekend with my cousin Linda and her family. I’ve never been to The Woodlands or to Linda and John’s house so it will be fun.
My cousins: there are eight of us - all girls! I am the second oldest. The order goes like this: Janet, Betty, Joan, Linda, Marilyn, Lynn, Chris and Anne. (Or is Lynn older than Marilyn?) Or are they the same age? (They’re pretty close.) Linda, Marilyn and Chris are sisters, Janet and I are sisters and Joan and Lynn are sisters. Anne is not only the baby but a singleton.
I saw Anne, who lives in Atlanta, a few months ago when she was in California and cousin Joan as well - I see her the most often because she lives here in the California mountains and teaches elementary school. (Good source material there.) I saw Lynn earlier this year when her family was visiting from Spokane, WA.
A few years ago we were actually all together for a reunion and we laughed because for the first time ever, all eight of us went out without our parents. Grown-ups at last!!
So what is my favorite Louisa May Alcott title: Eight Cousins!
(But Little Women is my favorite of her books, followed by An Old Fashioned Girl.)