September 6, 2005 - Tuesday
Harry started kindergarten and riding the bus last week, but today was Jeremy's first day of school this fall. He doesn't take the bus, he's back in the same preschool class for another year, but he is interested in seeing Harry get on it. He's never complained about not being able to go on the bus, I assume because he understands that he's just too young and will go on it in two more years. I'm pretty sure he understands the concept of being the younger brother, at least when it comes to things like this.

Yet, Jeremy is certainly his own person. (Indeed, Harry is really more the follower in terms of personality and regularly succumbs Jeremy's baiting.) For example, Jeremy is fair more interested in clothes than Harry. Well, Harry is interested in clothes for utilitarian reasons, particularly how they feel and how comfortable they are. Jeremy, however, likes to look good. He still likes his khaki shirts and chino pants a lot (and relishes buying new ones at the store), as well as his yellow shirts. Today for his first day, he chose this new yellow and blue striped, long-sleeved shirt with a short-sleeved yellow-collared polo-style shirt underneath, both of which we bought just a couple of weeks ago. It was cold enough for two shirts this morning and Jeremy liked the idea of having a collar underneath his long-sleeved shirt, and also got a big kick out of tucking them in. It got much warmer in the afternoon, but Jeremy didn't take the long sleeve off. It probably never occurred to him, but I don't think he would have anyway. Look at the hand-in-pocket pose he struck more than a couple of times this morning.

The best thing about today, though, was that Jeremy seemed surprisingly confident when he got to school without his brother. Maybe it was because his teacher, Miss Lisa, immediately asked for his help teaching a new girl, Karley, some of the rules and activities, but when I got there in the afternoon to pick him up he seemed somehow intangibly more confident than before. I'm not sure at all why that is. He is one of the older kids now in his class. And maybe it has something to do with the fact that he is out from his brother's shadow. But, it sure struck me that something was a little different about him and, since I went into today not knowing how he would react (he still sucks his finger at night and can sometimes seem more fragile) it was great to see.


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