Transition, Trepidation and Treats at Lee’s Summit North

By Thomas Berdych, Chapter Co-Chair at Lee’s Summit North for Father’s Club

It seems that the younger you are, the older you want to be. As kids, we aren’t jaded by the slog of life, but we pine after that next major transition. It can be the first ride on the bus to elementary, finally leaving for middle school… but being a freshman? It can be a pinnacle, finally making it to the big leagues, shedding our younger selves for those steps of independence. Learners permits, homecoming, football games, prom, all the entices and memories of high school that can last a lifetime before we jet off to college and adulthood.

Freshman Transition Day

As dreamy as that transition can seem, the day that it arrives, where you get to the bigger hallways, the larger crowds, the oddly numbered rooms etc… The fear starts to creep in. At least at Lees Summit North, there is a reprieve, Freshman Transition Day! Here you get to join all the others just like you, slightly lost, mostly anxious opportunity to navigate the school with 25% of the crowd and simulate that first day. Even though on back-to-school night, I happily trudged through the halls with my own freshman daughter, counting the steps, tracing the route of classes from multiple entry points… one can never be too sure. Her excitement of first day outfits slowly gave way to the disgust of having to all wear the same shirt and the anxiety that she wouldn’t remember all the steps that she calculated with precision.

Enter the Father’s Club!

What better way to ease that fear with a snack, a smile and stupid jokes? This was our second go at freshman transition day, with renewed excitement because this year we came bearing pop tarts! Putting those Nutri-grain bars in our rear view (trash fodder we later learned) we were armed with sugar and fist bumps.

The buses and car riders arrive, bringing the typical range of emotions, the confidence swaggers closely followed by the drawn hoods, the sound silencing earbuds, the downward gazes, the darting glances. Here is where we make the difference. The downward gazes lift up, the eyes regain some joy, the smiles start to appear because a) free food and b) a smile and an encouraging voice that reminds them to have a good day, shake off the fear and embrace the moment they have been dreaming about.

It seems small but watching the emotions shift for even just a moment changes the outlook, adds a vibe and sets a tone that reignites the dream and puts the anxiety at ease. It makes my time all the more worth it and is a humble reminder that the simplest of gestures can add to the excitement of the future!