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A Letter From Kate

Dear Readers,

I hardly ever looked forward to the first day of school that I can recall. I always dreaded the end of summer and going back to a school routine that included homework, papers and tests.

I remember my first day of fifth grade very well. That was the year my family had moved to a small town, and my sister and I had to start at a new school. Because it was a small town, the school was fairly small, and most of the kids had been together since kindergarten. They knew each other very well and were a little suspicious of new kids.

I remember waiting for the school bus to pick up my sister and me that first day. I think I felt more anxiety that day than any other day of my school years. I had never ridden a school bus, and I didn't know what to expect. That year turned out better than I had expected, although it took me a couple of years to make many friends. I survived several more first days of school in junior high and high school with no problems.

But when it came to graduating high school and starting college, my jitters were back. I was excited about going away and living in a dormitory, but I was apprehensive about leaving my family and friends. There were many tears when my mother and sister left me in my dorm room that first day. But it didn't take long for me to begin to enjoy my college experience.

I am glad I don't have to worry about first days of school any more, but I've found that life is a series of "first days" - first day at a new job, first day at a new church, or any day that you're in a new setting for the first time. I now look forward to meeting new people. I think it's exciting to meet new friends, and I welcome the opportunity!

Together With God

Every September, as the weather changes and cool rain falls on leaf-strewn pavement, I think about going to school. I graduated high school in 1968, but I always have that urge to gather my books and pick out a first day outfit to wear.

In past years, I have been known to order pamphlets for colleges or evening classes at the local campus, trying to fulfill the need to follow life's order. It's as if I were trained to go to school every September, and that training is so deeply instilled that it becomes a marker of time. Time to start a new season.

In spring we prepare ourselves for the planting and the excitement of surviving a long, cold winter by celebrating the rebirth of Christ at Easter. We enjoy the sprouting flowers - symbols of a fresh start - and so it is with September and the beginning of school. Our summer fun is ending, and it's time to get down to business. So on the first day of school, enjoy the end of those lazy days of summer and get down to the business of preparing for a new season. I have accepted the fact that I'm not going to school, and I have stopped ordering pamphlets, but I still have that feeling of beginning.