Memory Lane

I had to laugh at The Boy this morning as he got changed 3 times!  Because you see today is non-school uniform day.  Now I remember these days well as kid.  They could either fill you with dread or delight.  If you had something to wear that was bang on trend then nothing could go wrong at school.  You felt like you were almost on the same level as the 'In Crowd'.  In fact you were part of the 'In Crowd' and you could take on the world.  If however your idea of fashion was something warm and practical then NSUD was your initiation into how sometimes clothes can define you and put you into a group whether you realise it or not.  That sounds materialistic but unfortunately in some cases it's true.

Now I have to admit over the years I've been in both these groups but let me tell you Matchstick trainers do NOT put you in the cool group!!  Little did I know that when I was happily choosing my new trainers at Freeman Hardy Willis with my mum, this would be my first introduction to branding and boy did it scar me for many years!  It's funny but I can remember the boy who first noticed them and who took great delight in laughing at them with his mates.  I was gutted.  I had no idea that a word stitched onto my trainers could not only be so important to others but also make me feel so ridiculous.  I remember colouring the word in with a black marker so nobody could see the word, wondering what my mum would say when she noticed.  I hoped she wouldn't spot what I'd done and come to think of it, I don't remember if she did actually notice but I'll always remember that feeling of not fitting in.  Instead of being proud of my trainers I instantly hated them for making me so un-cool.

Now that I'm older and ahem, somewhat wiser I realise how silly that was but when your a kid, things like that matter and can really knock your self-esteem.   I watched The Boy changing his mind over what to wear remembering how important it is to get it right.  I tell him it doesn't matter what he wears but I remember how hurt I was when I was ridiculed.  I needn't worry, my son is way cooler than I was at that age but it brought back some memories of school days that you tend to forget as you get older.  Many adults think kids don't have anything to worry about when that's not true.  They fret about things which may seem insignificant to us but mean the world to them.  Our problems aren't bigger than theirs, just different and sometimes we forget how cruel school can be.