Page 58 of Reclaimed Dreams

Chapter18

42 years ago

Jo sat in her classroom, surrounded by piles of books and supplies, about thirty seconds from a meltdown. This was happening. Really happening. In three short days, she’d have thirty children in her classroom, staring expectantly at her, waiting to learn. And it would be her job to teach them.

Back-to-school panic dreams had begun two weeks ago. Despite the veteran teachers on her team assuring her that it was all normal, Jo couldn’t quite shake the belief that the one about vomiting in class was more premonition than nightmare.

Today she’d finally been able to get into her classroom to begin putting it all together, and two hours in she was completely overwhelmed. She had a vision for a cozy, carpeted reading nook, desks organized in small groups, and bulletin boards that would rotate themes and content with the month and unit changes. She didn’t lack the design or inspiration. The physical energy to do it all was seriously in question though. The thought of getting all this work done in three short days made her want to curl up in a ball and cry.

A quick knock on her doorframe startled a yelp out of her.

“Dom! What are you doing here?”

“I brought you a first day of school present. Can I bring it in?”

“Of course!” Jo scrambled up from the floor, happy for a distraction. “You didn’t have to do anything.”

“Today’s a big day. I wanted it to be special.” Dom grunted as he carried in a big wooden box. When he cleared the doorway and turned, she could see it was a bookcase.

He set it down carefully, and she ran a hand over the smooth walnut-stained finish. Mother Goose and fairy tales covered every inch of the elaborate trim. The left panel was hand-carved with Jack climbing a beanstalk up the side of the shelves, the giant’s magical kingdom across the top panel, and Jack and Jill tumbling down the far side. The edge of each shelf featured different story elements woven together—roses, harps, keys, knives, waves, and more.

“Dom, it’s beautiful! This must have taken you ages!”

“A few weeks. I’ve been whittling on my lunch breaks.”

She pulled him into a hug and pressed a firm kiss to the lips she loved. This man of few words showed up for her in action every time. He already worked so hard for his own dreams. Here he was, making time and space in his day to support hers.

“It’s just gorgeous. Thank you, honey. The kids are going to love it.”

“If you tell me where you want it, I’ll move it for you. It’s a little heavy.”

“Right over there in the corner, please. Wait, I’ll unroll the carpet first.”

“I can do that. You keep doing what you were doing.”

With the calm efficiency of someone who worked with his hands for a living, Dom sliced open the plastic wrap and unrolled the rug in the corner before placing the beautiful bookcase on top of it, anchoring her reading area.

He turned and surveyed the piles of books she was sorting. “Looks like you’ve got a lot of heavy lifting to do. I don’t have to be back at the job site until two. If you point me in the right direction, I can help.”

Jo’s heart swelled with love and gratitude. This man of hers… She sighed.

“You can put the science books in that cupboard there. Thank you, love.”

31 years ago

Jo looked around the classroom that had been hers these last eleven years, and her eyes welled with emotions. Bittersweet joy, fondness, anxiety, gratitude, sorrow, grief, and more battered her from all sides so quickly that she couldn’t pull them apart to manage them. Instead, they all hit her at once, and she was helpless to do anything but feel.

She’d put so much of her life into this room and the hundreds of children who’d passed through its door. Now that she was staring down a new phase of her life, the idea of leaving behind everything she’d known, the good and the bad, was overwhelming. True, she wanted to be a stay-at-home parent, but that didn’t mean she had any idea how to actually do that. She knew teaching and was damn good at it.

The kids had thrown her a goodbye party that made her cry. And a few of her favorite parents had shown up after school with bottles of wine and advice, which made her openly weep. When her principal had popped in with cupcakes, Jo fully lost her shit. Thankfully, Principal Pam had seen her through more than one crying jag and took it all in stride. Jo was grateful to have worked for such an amazing leader.

She would miss the community she’d built here, but she also knew that leaving right now was the best thing for her growing family. Still, knowing it was the right decision didn’t make it any easier to pull off. She’d emptied her desk of personal items, packed a box with all of the letters, art, and handmade gifts that kids had given her over the years, and put everything else away for the next teacher who would come into this space.

Reflecting on the chaos of her first year, she hoped that the systems she’d organized would make things easier for the woman who would take her place. Another first-year teacher, Pam had said. Jo had left her an encouraging note in her desk drawer.

Boxes of books Jo had bought for the classroom over the years were stacked by the door. She would really miss those Scholastic book fairs. Now her beloved bookcase stood empty. She rubbed a hand over her barely-there belly, and imagined filling up the shelves with board books and stuffed animals instead.

When Dom came to pick her up, she was ready. She helped carry the boxes out to his pickup truck, and teared up again when he came out with the bookcase he’d so lovingly built for her. It was the end of an era, but Jo took joy from the idea that the fairy tales and nursery rhymes would grace her own children’s nursery and hold all of their treasured tales.

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