That time of the year again

It is that time of the year again! New 'fresh' books, buying binding sheets and labels, dusting bags and boxes to see if it is reusable and so on..

You guessed it right. School starts soon and I can't tell who's more excited - my son or I?!

Every year, I take up the responsibility of binding and labelling the school books. Measuring and cutting the sheets, carefully covering the books, cello-taping the flaps - so therapeutic! It is also nostalgic. I look into the pensieve scattered with my childhood memories, observing my parents bind my books, to assisting them and then covering the books on my own. The visit to the friendly neighborhood stationery store, gaping at the laminated binding sheets (damn, they were costly!!), settling on the normal brown paper, having a lot of fun choosing what labels to pick - the cartoon ones, the plain ones, the car ones, so many choices to make!

I always loved this chore and needless to say, I was so excited to repeat the cycle with my child!
This year, I let him observe for a while, and also got him to choose and peel the labels out (slyly added Dora stickers too - to make sure he doesn't get into the boys/girls arguments in school, he is still unsure about it though, let's see how that pans out).

Starting of the school year also means an end to the vacation - not only his but mine as well. Will have to sharpen my skills, make plans and be ready to make the journey as easy and fun as possible.
Here's to a great new year - full of exciting possibilities, new learnings, happiness and disappointments, and everything in between! 

Education and learning

Finally its time for Sid to start going to school. Formal education starteth!
As Josh put it 'Time for education to come in the way of his learning!'

He is going to learn, discover, play, fall, laugh, cry, make new friends, fight with them, be embarrassed (mostly by his parents, as all kids are at some point in their schooling!), take things seriously, not take things seriously, look up to people, be disappointed, be confused, make mistakes, regret them and then do it all over again. I only hope he has lots of fun going through this phase of his life and most importantly be happy for the most part of it!

Lessons

Today, when I looked up google.com, I saw that there was a doodle. A fence, 2 boys, 1 painting it and the other eating an apple! I suddenly remembered the English lesson we had in primary - Tom Sawyer! Its amazing how some images are created in your mind when reading something. It stays with you for a long time, hidden in the deep corners of the mind. Then, suddenly, you see something similar and kazaam! the image just pops right out. Yes, the doodle was Google's tribute to Mark Twain. It indeed was the scene from Adventures of Tom Sawyer where he is asked to paint the fence and Tom, as smart as ever, gets all his friends to paint it instead! I still remember the lesson vividly.

I do remember most of our English lessons (as we used to call it back then :)). From Medusa to King Lear to the giant who hated trespassers! From BlackHat to Black Beauty. From the friends who made a pact to meet after 20 yrs to the couple who bought everything through installments!

And the poems! Such lovely ones. If only we didn't have to 'study' them. I loved them anyway. From Lead kindly light to Under the greenwood tree (My friend and I used to compose music for the poems and sing it out, so I still remember so many lines!) I loved all of Tennyson's poems, esp. Home they brought her warrior dead! Makes me sad each time I read it.

Sometimes I have this urge to actually go looking for English textbooks! Do we actually get these in stores anymore?

Btw what are your favorite lessons from language classes in school? Care to share?

P.S: More about the doodle here: www.guardian.co.uk/technology/2011/nov/30/google-marks-mark-twain-birthday.