First day of school

I took his hand.
I placed it in mine.
I could feel him shaking
trembling with fear.
I was saddened.
I wanted to cry.
For such a little boy
his burden was great.
I put my arms around him,
I told him that
everything would be okay.
I wished I could stay with him
throughout the whole day.
He would make some friends.
Tomorrow he won't be able to wait to do it again.
A tear trickled down my cheek.
He wiped it away.
He said the bravest words a boy could say;
"I must be on my way. I'm a big boy now.
Don't cry mommy, I will be home later today."
He kissed my cheek and darted away.
I found myself crying tears of joy and pain.
I was so proud of my little man
but, so scared of losing my child.
I paced the floors all day,
wondering if he would be alright.
I thought of calling just to see
but, I was afraid of embarrassing
my little man to be.
As soon as the clock rolled around to three
I went outside to wait for him.
I was scared out of my mind because
I didn't know what I'd say if he had a bad day.
But, after waiting just a heartbeat later
I could hear laughter from far away.
Is that my boy I could hear a block away?
When the bus dropped him off,
he came running to me
with a smile on his face
and a twinkle in his eye.
I knew then that my little man would be alright.