Back-to-School with DeliberateLIFE
In past years, I have thought of “back to school” time as a time to return to routines. This
year, after reading DeliberateLIFE’S back to school issue, I am thinking more
about transformation, rethinking routines, and beginning a familiar process in
a new way.
Getting ready for back-to-school in a new way means
understanding I don’t know this process of shopping, planning, arranging for
after-school schedules, etc., as well as I imaged.
As a college student, I chose the liberal arts because I
was fully committed to lifelong learning and learning for its own sake. What
did I learn from reading this back-to-school issue?
I learned paper bags aren’t a green, earth-wise choice.
They contribute to the tons of food and food packaging waste slowly burying the
earth we live on and (hopefully) love. Sleek, efficient, and yes---cute—alternatives
are available for packing those lunches and sending them off to school.
I learned I don’t have to put aside all of my vacation
excursions until Thanksgiving or the Christmas holiday. Ellen Welty’s article
on maintaining the “vacation state of mind” taught me to more deeply value my “day-cations”
and strengthened my determination to find new locations for day-length
get-aways near home.
I learned—more fully—how highly education is prized by
girls around the world and how intensely many of those girls must fight, work,
and sacrifice for education. I felt a little sorrow when I considered how much
genius and creative expression is lost or buried in places where the gifts of
girls and young women aren’t appreciated or nurtured. I learned how I can help
change that.
DeliberateLIFE’s back to school issue is worth a read, a
thought, and an action. Back-to-school is not a time to fall into a familiar routine.
It’s a time for re-imagining and acting upon all of the wonders of learning and
sharing and growth.
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