An extra week can’t hurt that much

The change from summer to fall may still be many weeks off, but for

most parents in Newport-Mesa, summer is over on Tuesday. That’s when

kids in the Newport-Mesa Unified School District go back to school,

unless your child is scheduled to be returned to Harbor View

Elementary School. Over there, construction delays have caused a

week’s delay in their return.

I thought that the delay would be a blessing to the parents of

children at the school. After all, they get to spend six or seven

more days of quality time with their little ones before they turn

them over to their teachers for most of the day.

The delay is a second chance to do all the things they didn’t have

time for this summer. Perhaps they can take one last trip to the

beach, or maybe a daytrip to the Museum of Science and Industry in

Los Angeles. Or Disneyland.

I’m just not really sure what the rush is to get their kids back

in school. Besides, the district deserves a break here, OK? There is

construction going on at the school, and it’s not ready for the kids

to come back. Stuff happens. One missed week of school is not going

to prevent Dick or Jane from getting their good education. The delay

is not going to prevent them from getting into Stanford, and it’s not

going to cause a loss of self-esteem.

There is always the possibility that some of the parents want

their kids back in school on Tuesday because they’ve had it up to

there with camps, running around and the inevitable “I’m bored!” that

kids utter around early August.

Ya think?

This summer went quickly. It was made tolerable with the help of

some very good people who took care of our kids at the various day

camps and classes they attended.

The first to come to mind are the folks at South Coast Repertory

who worked with kids, among them our daughter, Bean, to stage four

outstanding performances of “The Snow Teen” during the Summer Players

session.

SCR youth drama programs are fantastic, and I recommend them to

any parent. But don’t put your kid in an SCR program hoping for the

next Meryl Streep or Harrison Ford. That’s not what the acting

classes are all about. They are about poise, confidence, creativity

and fun.

The Discovery Science Center in Santa Ana showed Roy how to make a

video game on a computer, and while I wasn’t thrilled about the

product, the process was enriching for him.

Roy also attended the school district’s Science Institute at Costa

Mesa High, which he enjoyed very much.

But his favorite day camp was Camp Costa Mesa. He got to go to

Medieval Times, Legoland, the beach, bowling (they had to travel out

of town, owing to the destruction of Kona Lanes), the Costa Mesa High

pool and generally had a fun time.

Thanks very much to counselors Rick, E.J., Mr. Dude, Son, Freddy,

Nancy, Mike, Young, Jasmine, Jeremy and Billy. If I’ve forgotten any

counselors, I apologize -- you all did a great job.

Our vacation this year was at two places we love: Yosemite and

Lake Tahoe. We drove first to Yosemite, arriving late at night so we

could wake up in the most beautiful place on earth. Both kids managed

to complete the spectacular Panorama Trail, which is eight miles of a

Yosemite that very few visitors see.

For me, this summer will be remembered as Bean’s summer. Without

going into detail, this was the summer that she gained a little

independence. While some parents are hesitant about letting go, we

gave her a little freedom, though always with ground rules and

check-in points. That she performed with flying colors is an

understatement. She exceeded our expectations in terms of her

maturity and responsibility.

Our little girl is growing up and growing up well.

The more I think about it, the more I wish our kids were enrolled

at a school that had a week’s construction delay. I’d play hooky,

going back down to the beach with the kids or perhaps hike around the

mountains behind Mission Viejo.

The end of summer means one less year of the Yosemite/Tahoe-type

trips. The kids are getting older, and before long, they won’t want

to hang with mom and dad as much.

I hope at least a few of the parents at Harbor View understand

that and make the most of the seven-day gift they have been given.

* STEVE SMITH is a Costa Mesa resident and freelance writer.

Readers may leave a message for him on the Daily Pilot hotline at

(949) 642-6086.