random thoughts – Day 1,252 – (Monday) – fall forward

Back when I was young (uttered in a total old person’s voice), this was the time of year I was fixated on thoughts of back to school. I would have been practicing my penmanship and signature for two weeks by now. My outfit for the first day was often already determined, having been my birthday gift from Mummu and usually chosen by me when we shopped together.

In seventh grade, the first day of school outfit was a short brown dress with long sleeves and a waist that was several inches of smocked elastic. The fabric had small houses printed all over it in white line art and I wore it with white vinyl knee high go-go boots. It was the first day at junior high and I was afraid the friend I was supposed to walk to school with would make us late so I walked alone to avoid the risk. 

For ninth grade the outfit included a light peach turtleneck worn with hunter green pants and a hunter green sweater jacket with a multicolored geometric design (that included peach) on the front panels. It had a shawl collar and a matching knit tie belt in hunter green. Another year of high school it was brown and yellow plaid high waisted pants with a yellow ribbed turtleneck. Oddly enough, I have recently become obsessed with finding the perfect plaid trousers, for which I may have to dust off the sewing machine and make for myself.

Being a schoolkid was fun with the excitement of the beginning and end of the school year and the various breaks in between – Christmas break, February vacation, April vacation, and summer vacation. I miss the promise of a new school year and wondering who might be in my various classes, study halls, and lunch periods, and if any boys would like me enough to ask me out on a date and then actually show up on the arranged day and time.

New to me handknit sweater.

Even though the calendar year begins in January, I still think of time in terms of school years and September as the start of things. I don’t love cold weather, but I’ve always loved sweaters and fall boots. 

Maintaining some of the old-time student fun vibe, this past weekend, I bought myself a chunky sweater, perfect for the crisp fall days that are on the way. Sure, it was from a thrift shop, but it’s a knit similar to what Mummu used to do, and it’s a bit oversized and a little long, like my favorite fisherman’s sweater she made for Ex1 that I very regrettably didn’t swipe from him during the divorce even though I wore it more than he did. When I learned he moved to Florida, I really regretted not grabbing the sweater. 

I might not have the minty fresh start of a new school year to look forward to, but there is still the promise of the crisp fall air, and walks amongst the colorful leaves or along a New England beach on a fall day where the air, water, and sand are all in tones of gray. And a new-to-me bargain of a hand knit wool sweater, waiting for some fall adventures. Not that I want summer to go, because I definitely do not, but it can't hurt to be prepared.