Dear Parents,
Just as surely as each school year begins with fresh perspective and renewed energy, each seems to end, for me at least, with a tilt toward the bittersweet. But I fight it.
The fifth graders in their gods and goddesses outfits, celebrating Greek Day, cause me to reflect upon how much our youngest girls have grown since September. The eighth graders practicing for graduation make me realize how, in the blink of an eye, they’ll be processing in their high school commencement. It’s tough for me to spend much time with any of our girls during these final days of school without seeing them as they were at various points in the past year, and how far they’ve come, or fast-forwarding to what lies before them. But I fight it.
It would be great if you could freeze dry children at each age and stage, savor that “now” in their growing up, and then rehydrate when you’re ready to move on. Alas. Instead, as I see them progressing from little girls to young women, I force myself to pause as often as I can to witness your daughters’ moments, unencumbered by what was or what will be. Really, I think Ferris Bueller said it best: “Life moves pretty fast. If you don’t stop to look around once in a while you could miss it.”
As the school year draws to a close, please relish exactly who your daughter is, letting go of backward regrets and resisting the tug of anticipating tomorrow. Savor.
Lynne