Friday 29th August - a bad start

Still feeling a bit unsettled by the parent’s evening, I send the boys off to school, complete with their empty letter envelopes. I’ve struggled through the letters now, with the aid of a dictionary.

At 8.15am the phone goes, C’s voice on the end:

“Mum, why didn’t you send back the letters ?”

“Because I think I’m supposed to keep them”.

“Mum, why didn’t you send in my swimming things ?”

“Because it’s not your swimming day. That’s next week”.

(this whole conversation repeats about 3 times, by which time I’m wondering if I am on the same planet as C.)

“Mum, teacher says I have to come home at 11am this morning”

“WHY ? You can’t, I’m going into Zurich for a meeting !” (This was true) “OK, I’m coming down, you’ll need a key”.

We had tried to get additional keys cut for the boys in case of emergencies in the summer, but were unable to without a letter of authority from our landlady. Unfortunately this won’t be possible for quite a while since she’s been on a boat somewhere in the Med since April and won't be back til Christmas…….. and I don’t want to risk sending them in with a key every day in case it gets lost – quite possible, knowing my children.

So I bike down to school at top speed, with a key to give to C, and interrupt his lesson, apologising to his teacher. His Friday teacher (team teaching) explains in rapid and stern German that I’ve sent him in at the wrong time and so he’ll have to come home at 11.00am, as they split the class on Fridays for English lessons, and he should have come at 9.00am, not 8.15am. I’m still feeling very fragile after last night, and I burst into tears - how on earth was I supposed to know that ? It’s not on the timetable (not comprehensible anyway). He wasn't in school last Friday as he was busy throwing up the off milk I'd made him drink....

She takes pity on me and I explain that I won’t be in at 11am as I have a meeting in Zurich. She softens considerably and starts speaking English (thank God). C’s half of the class start at 9am on a Friday and come home at 11.50am – the usual time. The other half of the class start at 8.15am on a Friday and come home at 11am, and I had – unwittingly – sent him in for the early session. She reassures me that she won’t send a child home if she knows there’s no-one in, and says that C can stay for the rest of the morning. Phew.

At the end of the day J comes home with the news that he’s been to the Gemeinde library. They had had a trip there during the afternoon, to show them where it is and what’s available. His Friday teacher (team teaching again) has told them that they can go and do their homework in the library after school if they want to. That’s fine, but it’s in the opposite direction to home, so J is happy to come home to do it. He’s still doing his homework at the kitchen table – for now.