How did my little baby become a boy?

You hear about mothers who clutch at the waft of air left behind by their kids as they trek off to school for the first time—mothers who lament, cling and wander the empty halls, not knowing what to do with themselves. It can be heartbreaking.

Fortunately, that’s just not me. Instead, school has always made me jump-for-joy ecstaticly for more reasons than this column can contain. The main one is that school opens up my children’s heads like a can of beans and stuffs wonderful things inside. My kids thrive and love it—I couldn’t be happier.

It was interesting then, to see the trepidation my 5-year-old son Riley stockpiled upon entering Year 1 this past September. He started at The British School of Beijing back in 2005, so school is hardly anything new. And yet, Riley had cried that morning. Perhaps it was the new school outfit that got him going. The big boy satchel, big boy uniform and black leather shoes can be a tad overwhelming, and even I felt a twinge of heart-wrenching emotion as he walked out sans Mickey Mouse backpack.

Something about the whole situation just didn’t feel right. Riley seemed too … little—like a tiny lamb in an oversized wolf suit. Then, something very strange happened: I began to worry. Maybe it’s a youngest-child thing, or the fact that Riley still fits 2-year-old undies. Or maybe, just maybe, it was that watching Riley enter this milestone experience churned up the harsh reality that I’m now well past procreation. Talk about a hard slap in the face.

Whatever the case, I was surprised that I actually worried about him a little as he scampered off to school. Of course, there really was no need. Riley came home glowing. Not only were all of his old friends there, but he had a lovely new teacher, too—one who even distributed dot-to-dot pages and made paper snakes. Suffice to say, he’s been skipping merrily to school ever since.

Tania McCartney