Hard to believe the kids have gone back to school

Stephanie Martin-Smith
Soul Purpose
I can’t believe it is back to school time already. Everyone I have talked to seems to share the same feeling that summer just flew by. Maybe it’s because we pack so much into the two short months of the year.

Each year time seems to go faster. I really tried to enjoy every warm, sunny moment that this summer had to offer.

I am not only shocked that summer vacation is over but that I have two kids now in high school – Dustin in Grade 11 and Jesse just beginning Grade 9. Lucas will follow into high school next year just in time for Max to enter Grade 1 (a wee bit of a gap). Public school is just a formality since Max thinks he should be going into high school!

We are now in the full throws of having teenagers. I am trying to not make too many mistakes with the oldest. When Max came along, I was rarely open to suggestions. I had my own real-life experiments with the other three and I knew exactly what would happen. You raise three kids pretty much the same and they turn out all completely different.

It seems this past summer was a gentle set up for the years to come. With Dustin away from home for three weeks out of the summer, and starting a new high school out of town, I realize that this is a gradual departure from our nest. Also I realized on his first “out too late night” (while having a complete panic attack) that I needed to pace myself since I will be going through this three more times and for many years to come. I figure I can do this one of two ways: (1) I can accept this is a natural change and release the control while maintaining a good relationship and a few important rules or (2) hold onto the reigns and give myself gray hair wrinkles and anxiety. I think I’ll go for the first option even though I’m sure I’ll fall off the wagon a time or two.

When the kids were smaller, back to school meant doing the happy dance with all of the other exhausted parents. Now I watch families loading and packing up kids for college and university and I think Yikes!

Time moves ahead without any hesitation or consideration. As a teen I never understood why on earth my parents would want to get up so early and now I think it makes perfect sense. It is becoming a very valuable commodity!

So with the smell of fall in the air, backpacks and lunches once again filling up each morning followed by a crazed rush out the door, who forgot what and where does everyone have to be at what time, music lessons starting up at the store, hockey around the corner and the dreaded “s” word (snow) being used by Max at our final summer holiday campfire, after a weekend at the Mitchell Fair, I think to myself… time flies when you’re having fun!