I’m hurrying towards the school, brand new schoolbag over my shoulder; it’s full of freshly sharpened pencils and crisp sheets of blank paper. My heart is pounding. I can hear the bell signalling the start; I’m going to be late.

That’s how my first day of kindergarten began, or at least how I remember it. And while I don’t have that same sense of panic today, I do feel a bit like that little five-year-old, not sure what’s in store for me. But hey, I have my new school supplies, and presumably, I’m up for the task.

Here I am at Royal Roads University, just outside Victoria, B.C.

I’m staying in a dorm much like the one in which Son #2 spent his first year in university. There’s a desk, chair, single bed, closet, sink. The floor is co-ed, but the bathrooms are not. Bright lights illuminate the hallway all night, and the walls are thin enough that you hear every footstep and slam of heavy doors. It gives off kind of a hospital vibe. Or maybe “jail” is a more apt description, for someone used to the independent life and the freedom of choosing how to spend each day.

This is really only day 2 of the actual online BA in Professional Communications program at Royal Roads. I suspect that yesterday – wherein much of the time was spent meeting new people, getting school I.D., finding our way around and such – was the calm before the storm. We only had one class, Professional Writing, and no homework. Today, however, is sure to be a different story. Classes run from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m., with an hour for lunch and a half-hour afternoon break.

Best line of the writing class, by the way, from our instructor Rosa: “Good writing is a courtesy. I’m teaching you to say ‘please’ and ‘thank you’ in language.” And this: “Grammar is the vase meant to contain the thought.”

More later.

Image: Pencils from “weinstock” and Pixabay.