The Promise Of the New School Year

It is that time of year again. A new school year begins. All the kids are excited about a new set of crayons that hasn’t been used yet, the new tennis shoes that will make them run faster this year, the new backpack, the new Star Wars or Dukes of Hazzard lunchbox, and for sure the new Trapper Keeper. Well, I may be dating myself with those references, but those days seem like yesterday. Isn’t it amazing how quickly time flies? For me, it feels like the new school year excitement was just the other day.

I do remember one year when the new school excitement was not there. It was a year when the oil field crashed and many, including my dad, lost their good-paying jobs. We did not have the money for new shoes, new clothes, a new backpack, a new Trapper Keeper, and any of the other new things I’d enjoyed in years past. I knew it, but my ‘friends’ also knew it, and they let me know they knew it in only the way that 13 and 14-year-olds can. It was a challenging year.

I learned that year that no matter how many touchdowns I scored, three-pointers I made, or how fast I ran, glory only lasted until I put my ragged clothes back on and everyone reminded me of my social value to them. It was also during this season in my life that a multitude of wise, caring adults stepped into my life because they saw past the clothes to a young man who had potential.

Now, as an adult, I think about all the students who don’t have new shoes, backpacks, crayons, or a Trapper Keeper, but are longing to have adults who see past that and see them as kids with potential. The potential just needs to be molded and shaped with great care. Kids act and think based on what they know. They do not know what they do not know.

Each child is unique. God does not make mistakes. God does not make junk. God makes one-of-a-kind masterpieces, and with the birth of each person, he tosses the mold. That’s the definition of a masterpiece. There is only one. There may be those who try to copy it, but it is not a masterpiece. That is true of each child who will enter the schools this week at LG. We have a school district full of masterpieces, filled with potential. What a privilege and responsibility.

I’m so proud to be part of a community that works hard to ensure every kid shows up to school with the latest and greatest backpack, school supplies, and other needs. I’m so proud of the LGISD team that I know and even the ones I don’t, because I know they choose to invest in potential.

So, this school year, as a member of the community who cheers on the Leps, what if we cheer on the bus drivers, lunch persons, teachers, Paraprofessionals, coaches, counselors, admin, and everyone else who invests in our most valued resource - the potential of our children? For every touchdown, three-pointer, and race won, we remember that those memories are great, but they pale in comparison to an adult taking the time to care for our kids.

Let’s Go LEPS!