Interesting time of year in Beijing. School is coming to an end, with a huge crescendo. There are finals. Final everything. Final exams, final projects, final dance recitals, prom, graduation and puberty week.
And if this weren’t enough, there are “the transitions.” Kindergarten moves to the Elementary School. The fifth grade ends their Elementary School reign and moves to the Middle School Campus. The eighth graders march over the bridge to run with the big boys in high school. The 12th graders graduate – and like international travelers exiting the baggage claim, they go through that one way door from childhood into adulthood.
It’s a rough time. I’ve seen the pensive faces of the 5 year olds as they follow their teacher through the halls of first grade. The little ones, wringing their hands and looking around, wide-eyed as they soak in all of the changes they will face in a few short months.
I’ve also witnessed the stress and fear of the unknown in the fifth graders, as they ready themselves not only for the transition in school, but also the transition of their bodies. I see them eyeing the anonymous puberty “girl question box” and “boy question box” as they cross to the far side of the hallway, to be as far from them as possible. Nothing is more stressful at 11 years old, than PUBERTY WEEK.
I can feel it – we all can. We all remember our journey through school and how traumatic it all was. I bet there isn’t a person alive who doesn’t remember some story about school they’d rather forget. And while all this uncertainty swirls around us, the stress is compounded by the end of the year “leavers.” Those people who have ended their time in Beijing and must face being a new student or adult, somewhere else in the world. They have the stress of moving up, moving out, moving through, moving alone to somewhere unknown, and start all over again. Part of being an expat.
I see the Tiger Moving trucks when I leave for school in the mornings. They are parked on the side of the roads, waiting patiently for a call to allow them access into the compounds. All Earthly belongings are packed for the next destinations. This is one of the final steps….it happens only after the liquidation garage sales. And then the purging of perishable items. Those are given to close friends only. If you are lucky, you might get unused bisquick, ranch dressing and the rest of the liquor cabinet in exchange for the subsequent loss of your ally and friend. Families swarm these “leavers” in order to purchase or receive the most coveted of items for themselves. For us, it was ranch dressing, almonds and wrapping paper.
There are “good-bye” luncheons, furious promises to stay in touch and plans to all get together one more time. And then, in a flash, everyone’s gone. The compounds, schools and shops are all empty. Like Sunday morning in a college bar. Quiet and lonely.
But now, we are in full swing. It reminds me of the “Truman Show.” Towards the end of the movie, when Jim Carrey finds out that he’s been living in a lie his entire life, he braves horrible storms in a boat. He’s scared, sad, worried, angry. This has to be the worst part – traveling at the speed of light towards something that leaves you paralyzed with fear. He finally reaches the end of the movie set- or world as he knows it. In that moment, he has weathered the storm. The fear changes. It becomes determination. He opens the door and walks through…….
Right now, we are all in the storm. Hanging on….but I have seen through the open door, and it’s sunny outside.
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