first day of the new school year

I feel like I have a huge Pandora's box sitting on my kitchen table.  The new school year starts today.  My youngest will take a bus, for the very first time, to a school that is not walking distance from our home. My older two will get into their own vehicle and drive themselves to the high school, another first.  My elementary school days are now truly behind me and will reside only in my memories. And the high school years for the oldest are half over. College visits loom on our horizon.

So, once they leave the house today, the box will be opened and all the good and bad of these next 10 months will be able to see the light of day.  They have all sorts of things to learn in school. Some are academic, but many are not. Many are simply life lessons, some pleasant, some painful, some neither. Some experiences are just an exposure to the many possibilities that come from making decisions and choices.

They aren't the only ones who learn. I learn with every school year what is truly important and what should be overlooked.  I learn how fast the time goes by when you are busy and how important it is to make some moments last as long as possible.  I'm reminded of what it is like to grow up and how fun it can be and how much it can hurt.

The first day of the new school year has arrived. My girls are awake and moving. Lunches are made. The sun has yet to peek over the horizon and time moves on.