For the Love of Crayons!
Crack open that package… Smell the new wax. Feel the crisp paper. Notice the pointy tips. Feel the pressure of the first stroke. Oh how I love crayons! Really all school supplies….
Hi! My name is Tobe and I’m addicted to school supplies!
When August rolls around, I get little butterflies in my stomach. Back-to-school season has started. Store ads will start to announce the new fashions, bookbags, etc. Staples or Office Depot will have the now famous $.01 deals. I will scour the ads for the best deals. I will wake up early to catch those penny deals before they sell out. I have even gone so far as to ask the store manager when the next shipment will be. I enlist my children to buy supplies with some of my money to get around those pesky purchase limits. I linger over the new folder and binder styles, trying to decide if I am a girly girl or a punk rocker. I buy my limits, walking out of the door with a new spring in my step, a smile on my face.
This year, I am not a student or a teacher. I don’t particularly need school supplies. I have a glut of leftover supplies from 20+ years of schooling. I could just reach in the random tub and pick out a notebook. But I don’t want leftovers, I want new and crisp. So again I found myself scouring the ads, looking for the deals. I did restrain myself to just buying supplies for my children using the school supply list.
As I discussed my addiction with my equally addicted friend, I came to a realization… It’s not just the school physical objects that get me excited. It’s a less tangible thing. To me, new school supplies signal a new beginning. The start of a new school year. A clean slate. I know that soon, I will either start a class myself or start teaching a class. I will get a syllabus detailing all the assignments/topics/expectations. I will either give that motivational speech to do your best or receive one. I get to start over, fresh and clean, ready for a new adventure in education.
I’ve come to the realization that I will forever be a student. It’s my true calling. I love learning. I love sitting in a classroom, listening to a professor or other students sharing information or opinions. I want to have those nerdy debates over a theory or a technicality. I want to discuss the motivations of historical figures or debate allegories in literature. I want to get that feeling of conquering some difficult problem. I want to come home and have someone ask me “What did you learn in school today?” I want to share my day, all the nuances of language or theory, the silly questions asked by other students, the A I got on that paper that I only worked on for 2 hours. I want to physically feel my brain wrinkle.
So while I love that first spine cracking sound of opening a new composition book, it’s the underlying promise of something more that I am truly addicted to. I don’t think there is a cure for this addiction, but I don’t think I want there to be.
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