There’s a week or so in September that can be slightly tricky if – for whatever reason – you don’t have children.

You might have guessed it; it’s the week schools go back and social media gets flooded with images of small humans in uniform that’s usually slightly too big in a door that often looks familiar (you’ve seen it every year in this exact way or in real life) as they start a new school year.

I can’t speak for other people, but I have occasionally had the conversation with other non mums and the thought process seems similar and it goes something like this:

• Oh God, not again
• Oh, it’s cute though
• Don’t people have anything else to talk about at the moment?
• No, no, that makes me mean; let them enjoy their new start moment
• But seriously, haven’t the schools all gone back now?
• (then the one that’s a bit ouchy: ) Ok, I admit it, this is making me feel a bit sad / jealous / empty that I’ve never got to do this
• Oh thank God; it seems to be over for another year
• It wasn’t that bad really, I suppose

Some years it’s harder than others.  One year I drew on a photo of Norman and gave him a tie and a briefcase, posting it as his going back to school photo.  I’m not sure which phase of the above I was in at that point…

Don’t get me wrong though, I’m not on some tirade that because this is tricky for some others shouldn’t do it.  It makes me sad when I see posts implying that, as I think it would be daft – it would be like cancelling any other celebration day because some groups were not part of it.

So, I thought this year I’d take a slightly different angle which sometimes is a bit tricky in itself, but for which I have a really good teacher right now: One of my hypnotherapy trainers is very poorly right now; hers isn’t my story to tell, but she is a lesson in living in the moment and seeing the good even when that might feel really tough.  And flippin’ heck; if she can do that in her situation, I can damn well enjoy the smiles of small humans and their parents for a week without letting any negative feelings creep in and take over.  So that is what I will do.  And I wonder if you might do the same?

And I don’t mean just if this is the week every year that highlights what might feel like a bit of a gap; I mean with life in general.

What if we all genuinely celebrated each other and each other’s achievements without comparing them to what we have / don’t have / would love?  And what if we focussed on all the happy bits in our lives without the ‘yes, but…’s’?  I wonder if it would help us all be a bit more smiley-er?

I don’t know.  I could be wrong.  But what if I’m not?

So for now, I give you my fur babies:

The many positions of Norman:

And the ‘every day is Christmas day’ happiness of Percy:

Now, show me all those small people going back to school and I will celebrate their new starts with them and the fact that you got them to yourself for a whole six weeks (or the fact that you now get to set them (and yourself!) free after six weeks) :o)