"Are you sure it's his?" Thomas asked.
He whispered his joke, not wanting Dylan to hear his disbelief in the glowing report card we got from preschool today.
"Yes!" I replied. But I reread it, searching for clues that it might be boilerplate, and I counted how many times his name was mentioned -- 11.
Eleven seems like a lot of effort to put into a form letter.
Dylan's year-end profile was full of words like "pleasure," "willing," "polite," and "cooperative," and it filled me with unexpected joy.
My friend Sarah at Momalom is hosting a writing contest this week, in conjunction with 3 Sprouts, a company that designs unique and modern children's products. They want to hear mothers' stories of the unexpected. I imagine knowing one of the judges might disqualify this entry. But today's report card prompted one of the most delightful moments of surprise that I have experienced since becoming a mother.
Because it's not as if Dylan and "the unexpected" are strangers. It's just that Dylan's unexpected has often come in the form of a grocery-store throwdown worthy of the octagon, a dentist motivated to check his retirement portfolio, or an ear drum-busting alarm and flashing strobes.
Or a heart-stopping 10 minutes of OHMYGOD WHERE DID HE GO???!! amidst the confusion of elementary-school pickup.
I have searched Dylan's eyes for happiness.
I have sent Dylan to his room too many times.
I have tried hard to find a balance between setting expectations for behavior and not breaking his independent spirit.
I have described him as shy while sometimes wondering if he's unsociable.
Tenacious, determined, stubborn, a puzzle, a handful -- all words that would not have surprised me on his report card.
My parents read Dylan's note tonight. My father laughed. "Are you sure there isn't some sort of portal he goes through when he goes into school?" he said.
My mother was so proud of him, and made me feel like maybe his parents are actually doing something right.
What that something is, though, is anybody's guess. And who cares? Today, Dylan's teachers said, "He does it all, and has fun while doing it."
Jackpot!
May he keep having fun -- and surprising me -- until I come to expect it from him.
