The first week

This morning, the second week of Ramadan begins. The first week is always such a huge milestone for me. I look in the sky and I can see the moon half-full, and I know that we've taken a good first step in our month of fasting.

What's interesting to me is that every year feels so different. I can still remember two years ago, how shell-shocked I felt on the first day. Maya and Ziad had their first day in a new program that was just starting up, and I felt somehow like I was looking at the world from the bottom of a deep hole. This year, on the first day, Ziad had his first day back in his Nature Awareness program, and Maya and I went to a conference with our consultant from their charter school, and I was chatting with her and talking a blue streak. It was really a good day, although I was tired when we got home.

Which brings me to the overwhelming sensation of this first week: fatigue. I'm hungry sometimes, and thirsty a lot, but that doesn't seem to bother me too much. Sometimes I get so tired, so fast, that I imagine this must be what narcolepsy feels like. I go from feeling fine and energetic to having no energy at all, in a very short time. Which is pretty scary if I happen to be driving. On the way home from San Francisco last Saturday, I had to pull over and close my eyes for a few minutes, even though I wasn't particularly tired when we first got in the car. On the plus side, I haven't gotten sick.

Every week is different. This last week we went to Santa Cruz on Thursday, San Francisco on Saturday, Santa Rosa on Monday. We had a birthday party on Sunday, guitar on Tuesday, piano and scouts on Wednesday. We'll have OT on Friday, and maybe a play date (or perhaps a book group meeting). Well, it's no wonder I need to rest sometimes. I just hope the next three weeks aren't any busier than this one.