School Begins

The first day of school. The end of summer vacation. The beginning of so much more.

That day you're able to wear your new clothes with a new backpack and unused supplies. You get a new desk and a new teacher, a new class, and a year ahead of you full of learning, new friends, and lasting memories. It's always exciting to feel the atmosphere of school again, to smell the cafeteria food, and to see the classmates you didn't get to catch up with during the summer. 

It's a sweet time in children's lives. This morning I thought about this being only Kylie's second year of school (third including preschool) and about how much time she has ahead of her and how much she will experience and grow through her school years. I thought about how Kaden is now in the 3rd grade and that at that age, you're feeling bigger and older than ever. And as my sister and I conference called my brother, we told him to make sure he gets a picture on his first day of 6th grade because he doesn't have too many first days of school left.

I reflected on all the different stages of life and growing up. I remember going into the 1st grade - hoping that my best friend I made in Kindergarten would be in my class and seeing all the books in the classroom that I would soon learn to read on my own. I remember the 3rd grade - we weren't such little kids anymore, we were the oldest in that wing of the school, we were treated as older children, and the lessons ahead were those of astronomy and learning to write in cursive. I remember the 6th grade like it was yesterday - being between elementary and junior high, we had our own lockers (which was a huge deal), and we got to eat in the high school cafeteria and walk through the halls of the junior high.

I realized that I am still going through steps in life: experiencing a first day at a new job, the first vehicle I purchased on my own, the first time being an aunt. I am still learning and have so much to look forward to but at the same time, there are so many passing memories that I need to hold on to and remember, and I need to cherish the time and place that is now because before long, it will be a new first and a new experience to embrace.

But what I hope for today is that all the kids enjoy their first day of school this year and also realize that soon enough, it will be the last day of school.