This week, my daughter started preschool. She is attending a Hawaiian immersion preschool, and we are excited for her ʻōlelo Hawaiʻi to be carried throughout her day-to-day life. This is a little precursor to tomorrow’s post that will be more about my perspective on our transition so far with my daughter starting preschool. This post focuses more on my week’s epiphany on feelings of vulnerability and how my daughter’s transition into preschool will be a collective ʻohana journey.
Vulnerability
Leading up to my daughter’s first week of preschool, I tried to prepare myself mentally and emotionally for this transition. In trying to assess my emotions, I think I realized why I was so nervous: there’s a sense of vulnerability with trusting in the school, and other ʻohana whose keiki attend the school, and not wanting to be judged for X, Y, or Z. Especially because our keiki are a reflection of us, my husband and I, our kūpuna and so on, I think one’s natural response to one’s keiki is to judge the parents–either positively or negatively. I’m glad I was able to check myself as these feelings started to cause some anxiety because while I know that my husband and I aren’t perfect, we’re trying. I wouldn’t consider my husband and I to be a blueprint for others to follow, but I know we must be doing something right. We’re doing the best we can and that is enough.
Immersion, all in!
Shortly before my husband started law school, we’ve come to learn the saying that “when a family member goes to law school, the entire family goes to law school.” This saying cannot be more true with my daughter starting at a Hawaiian immersion preschool. My daughter’s preschool is generally known by many for the deep parent involvement. The more I learn about the different ways that the parents will be involved, and the different kuleana, the more I keep thinking that this is the way that it’s supposed to be. So here we go! We’re all jumping in!