Grade 2 adventures: Embracing an eccentric mind in a conformist world

My darling little girl went back to school to start Grade 2 this week.

She was worried: who would be her teacher? Would she have any of her friends from last year in her class? Will the work be difficult?

But that afternoon, when I picked her up, she was beaming. Her teacher is wonderful, she doesn’t know any of her classmates yet, but she will make new friends and she’ll learn great new things.

Of course. I’m delighted that my little Egg’s concerns have been resolved so easily.

I, however, am still worrying about a lot of things. Will her teacher be able to understand that she has an eccentric little girl in her class.

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One who thrives on independent thought, the freedom to express her often unusual ideas? Will her teacher understand that she is a free-thinker? A rebel disguised as a seven-year-old conformist who is capable of anarchy when you expect it the least?

One who is obsessed with clean hands, who hates running around the sports field and who has to have the space to daydream to function at her best.

Will the new teacher understand that she has at least one invisible dog at school at any given day?

If her teacher adapts to all these eccentricities, I salute her.

Most of my teachers didn’t tolerate my own quirks as a schoolboy and that greatly contributed to the fact that my own formal education held very little pleasure for me.

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The one or two teachers who granted me the liberty to be myself, to cherish the roads of logic my somewhat warped mind followed at times, are still hugely appreciated to this day.

My dear little Egg, I have always, since those wonderful days when I looked after you in my own naive way as a baby, encouraged you to dream, to think for yourself.

We live in a world where these traits are often not appreciated. Life can sometimes be cruel to free spirits such as you and I.

I can’t always protect you against the common intolerance that taints our wonderful world, but I can urge you to be strong and never conform.

Life can be incredibly hard, and Grade 2 is no exception. But go out, conquer new worlds and make me proud.

You are perfect just the way you are.

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