Free At Last!

Fortunately I have never been in jail before....but I have been a prisoner....a prisoner of work that is.  But today was officially my "release day."  I love the fact that educators actually have a beginning and an ending to their work year.  We get to clean up, clean out, and ultimately walk out.  As I walked out of the doors of the school building that I call home for 10 months out of the year I did so with a bounce in my step.  In under one minute I went from being a paid professional adult to a school girl without a care in the world...I was a kid again!!! I wanted to throw reams of paper up into the air and fling my legs back behind me like they always did in those old Toyota commercials.  I wanted to peel out of the parking lot and meet up with all of my friends and head to the lake...windows down.  Instead I drove to Walmart and went grocery shopping.  My school girl bubble burst as soon as remembered that I had two starving children waiting at home.  The good news is that I realized that I can actually be a functioning member of society when I am not working and I am shopping sans kids.  It was actually a revelation I tell you!  I was in and out of there with only the items that I came for...and I didn't have to turn my back to the security cameras to scold the little eye-roller either.  All of a sudden it became all too clear to me:  I am capable of ............anything.  I actually carried on a conversation with a complete stranger....I did not huff and puff with the customer in front of me could not figure out how to swipe their card or tap the screen..... I WAS FINALLY NOT IN A HURRY FOR CRYING OUT LOUD!!!!!!
Now, don't get me wrong here....I do love my job (thank heaven for that!) but I still can't figure out the actual crime I committed that landed me there.