First Day of School

My hands fidgeted on the seat in front of me as I waited for the other students to get on the bus. With crispy pants, stiff new shoes, and backpack on its maiden voyage, I looked out the window wondering what the new school year would bring. Who would be my teachers? What would my schedule be like? What would I learn? What would I achieve? The questions of August were always the same.

Although, for me, school bus rides are a thing of the past, the excitement of this time of year remains. When I think about my life in education, I know one of the reasons I loved it so was because each year you got to start over. Whether as a student or teacher, you always get a chance to sharpen your pencils, arrange your desk, and start over. A new year offers the chance to build on what had gone well the year before and correct the things that didn’t.

If only life was the same.

Maybe it can be.

Maybe we, like the students who begin school this week, can approach our lives – our jobs, relationships, health, and spiritual lives - as if they begin anew today. Just thinking about it makes my heart beat quickly, and dreams start percolating. This could be a great new year. There are things to learn, friends to meet, and accomplishments to strive for. It’s time to climb on the bus. The lights are flashing!