I sat down in a chair in front of Mr. Tushman’s desk, but Auggie remained standing.  He seemed pretty open to talking with Mr. Tushman, and after I explained who Mr. Tushman actually was, Auggie got more curious, and even started laughing.  I’d like to say that I was relieved to hear him laugh, but I still knew what was coming next, which put a large pit in the middle of my stomach.  

 

Children’s’ voices appeared in the main office, and I saw all of the laughter and comfort in August’s face drop.  “I don’t want to meet anyone” he says to me, and I have to agree, meeting kids was so much easier when he was younger.  I whispered words of encouragement with all my strength, but there’s nothing anyone could say to prepare August for this.  

 

I put a lot of trust into Mr. Tushman to find students that would be mature enough for this, and judging them merely by their own looks I’d say they were as mature as any middle schoolers could be.  They gave the typical eyes down to the ground response when they introduced themselves, but who could blame them?  I don’t think they’ve ever experienced something like this before.

 

Pretty soon the kids were working their way out the door, and I knew the thirty minutes I agreed to would feel like forever.  I tried to be strong, I tried to be positive, but honestly I was more scared than August would ever be.  “See you soon,” I muscled out, with no response.