“Education is not filling a pail but the lighting of a fire.” ~William Butler Yeats
Today marks a turning of the page. Whether there are children returning to school in your household or not, or you may be returning to school yourself, today marks the beginning of fall and all that brings with it. Last night the winds seemed to pick up with a felt ferocity that blew away all summer had held. Winds were so strong I began to imagine them cleaning the slate clean for a fresh start. And don’t we all need this every now and then? Although many of the schools in the area began early this year, before Labor Day, today all children will find themselves caught up in a routine that looks nothing like their summer life. Some will embrace this. Others will not. But all will be changed by the turning of this page.
Fall brings with it shorter days and colder temperatures. This requires an attention to what we wear and how we plan our days. No more grabbing a t-shirt and shorts, ones that may have been on the floor from yesterday’s wear. Instead, there must be an attention to layers and the fickle temps of these autumn days. Some are as warm as summer only to turn bitterly cold by day’s end. As we layer on clothing, we also take on new ideas, new experiences and wear them like jackets that bring us warmth or comfort.
But it is the rhythm of the change of seasons that calls to me. As I watch the children this morning waiting for their buses, I will think of what lies ahead for them in this change. New things will be learned, challenges will be overcome, successes and mistakes will be made. There will be new friends and mentors they never expected. I have already heard children I know look forward to the milestones they will experience this year: being in the class that goes to the State Capitol, getting their Bible as a third-grader, beginning in confirmation, graduating from high school, going off to college. So many pages, large and small, that turn in our lives.
As we grow older, if we allow ourselves, we can see this time of year as a time to turn a page also. The wind that blew throughout the night and threatens(or promises) to continue today is ready to offer itself as a slate-cleaner. What pages are ready to turn for you? What adventurous experience do you want to embrace? What new friend do you want to make? How do you need to be mentored?
The pages of summer have come to an end. But the story of fall is yet to written. How we choose to embrace the ever turning pages of our lives is a gift, a gift not to be taken lightly. Come winter, and make no mistake it will arrive, what will you have learned? How will you spend these glorious days of autumn?
As the page turns, let the new story begin.