Wednesday 23rd May 2018
Yesterday after school Linus wouldn’t get out of the little yellow bus; insisted on ‘staying at school’. Is not 8:30 till 3:30 enough for this scamp? As much as we play/explore/investigate/swim together, its never good enough because I’m just his mum and not his pals!
So this morning as I usher Kingsley onto the loo a decision is reached in my brain: he may stay at school till 5 and play to his heart’s content. I’ll fetch him at 5. He doesn’t know it of course; all he’s doing this morning is avoiding getting dressed / chewing his banana far too slowly / irritating me. Then at the town square flying the Greek flag in anticipation of his pick up while I stuff apple in his mouth.
I’m definitely outsourcing his afternoon fun today…
Five past five I reach Aeīpolis. Children’s happy voices are coming from the school, pitter patter of shoed feet too. And then I hear Kingsley’s voice calling out ‘Kostī’. The Kostī he’s been telling me about for a week. His friend Kostī who can handle Kingsley’s roughhouse play. There they are, two boys and one curly haired little girl – Zizi – overseen by an exhausted Miss Yianna and the very youthful bouncy Miss Ioānna.
Kingsley is hiding behind the door when Miss Ioānna lets me in. ‘Poū eīne o Dorötheos?‘ he’s in a playful mood and I must look for him. There he is!!
One look at me and all I hear is ‘I want to stay here at school to play!’ Poor teachers are ready to crack open a bottle of Retsina. We are definitely going home! And as our luck would have it, we’re going home with Kostī! His mum Cornelia arrives that moment, offers us a lift and Kingsley’s dreams come true. Riding shotgun the boys laugh/bash each other all the way to Saronītha.