Much Success--Our Promise of Education

This is what is known as the best time of the year, at least in my world.  Summer is winding down and fall is arriving.  But there are still long days to enjoy, to truly savor, as we realize these sun-drenched days won't be around much longer.  It is the time when you scramble to do all your favorite outdoor activities before the cold blows in, to venture to all those places you hadn't quite gotten to yet.  And for me, every year at this point, it is a time of promise and excitement.

As a teacher, this is the first week of school and the beginning of my year.  It is hectic, it is tiring, but it is magical.  As I savor these last warm days, I also welcome a brand new batch of students.  I get my classroom ready, I walk through each lesson meticulously, I attend many meetings to sharpen my skills, and I become inspired for the year ahead.

Yet this year, as I prepare, things are a bit different.  Not only am I now able to work across the K-12 spectrum and support students of various ages with various needs to maximize their success; I am also able to think beyond the school building.  Yes, I am becoming inspired by the promise and excitement for my future class, but at the same time, I am becoming inspired by the promise and excitement of our own family's future.  The leap may seem odd, so let me explain...

The connection happened at a conference, of all places.  When the presenter was delivering his closing remarks, he said something that made me think far beyond the classroom and far into the future.  Here, he shared what they tell their students as they graduate high school and prepare to leave for college.  "At our schools we don't say good luck," he said.  "You don't need luck if you're well prepared, so we say much success."  It was simple, it was straight-forward, but it left an incredible impact.  Immediately, my mind went to the children in my classroom, the children in my school.  I began running through the different ways we prepare our students for those academic and character tests they will encounter in and outside of school.  But all of a sudden, it seemed to strike a chord with me outside of the classroom, with the child who will become part of our family.

I began thinking of our future family--children we will nurture and support as infants, toddlers, adolescents, and adults.  And I began thinking of the implications of good luck and what it really means to truly prepare your children for the future.

Education is an enormous part of our lives.  Indeed, a promise of a good education is one of the most important things we feel we can give to the child that comes into our family.  Still, it is clear that it is not just education that prepares children for their future.  And so, I'm thinking of what it will really take to prepare our children for success.

When our child walks into Kindergarten, I want to watch knowing that we have prepared them for that moment--that we've walked them through their day, discussed what it means to be a respectful, responsible student, shared our belief that school is for learning and for fun.  And I want them to come running into our arms with stories of success.  I want to be sitting in the stands as they play in their first soccer game or their first concert, knowing that we have helped them plan for success,  for them to leave in the morning confident in all that lies ahead of them that day.  And as they grow, we want to be there helping them navigate those emotional years, there to help them tackle their challenges, to guide them in their studies, and to support them fully in their dreams.

Of course, there will be days when they may be timid or days where their confidence has left them and on those days, we'll be there just the same, preparing them for success as we build them up.  It is easy to say that you are ready for all the successes, but what is important is that you are just as ready for the challenges.  Likewise, it is easy to say that you are ready for a baby, but important to ask if you're ready   for an adolescent, a teenager, a college graduate.  And happily, I can say we are.  Our dreams for the future include preparing a child for success through all stages and being there for them every step of the way.

Yes, education is at the core of our family.  It always has been and always will be.  As future parents, it will be our greatest pleasure and accomplishment to educate and nurture a child--preparing them for much success, helping them up when they falter, and ensuring that their future is bright.  If we don't visualize success, we cannot make it a reality.  Fortunately, it is what we visualize and what we dream of--ensuring the child that comes into our lives and their entire family that they are well prepared, they have incredible support, and their future is bright.

No, we're not yet setting up a nursery, but yes, we are building a library for future little ones!