Tomorrow, my son returns to in-person school for the first time since March of 2020. It’s something he’s looking forward to and something I’m a little anxious about.

Even though he has autism, my son is incredibly social and loves to be around others. He has always loved school, and being home hasn’t been ideal for him. He did a wonderful job navigating his Microsoft Teams classes. His time awareness grew exponentially last year as he did this, and eventually, he told me to get lost when I would check on him during the school day. Ha! Being able to see and interact with his teachers was helpful but not the same as being in the school building.

If your kids have been home the duration of the pandemic, I know I’m preaching to the choir.

I feel fortunate to live in a part of the country where masks and vaccines are the norm, and we don’t have a whole lot of fussing about them. I also feel fortunate that my son has been a trooper about both of these things and understands their necessity. He really has been so patient and flexible through the whole thing.

I also have some anxiety about sending him back, but that’s my issue to deal with, not his. He has been jumping around with excitement today in anticipation of the bus pulling up tomorrow morning, and I am doing my best to be excited for him. Honestly? I really am.

I hope that we don’t end up with an explosion of Covid cases here with the start of school. I hope that everyone stays healthy and well and that, eventually, we can see each other’s whole faces in the classrooms again. We all love to see the kids smile.

If you see my kid at school tomorrow, look at his eyes. His smile will be shining brightly right there.