Vacations and Return to School

Well, we made it home in time for a mad rush to get back to work and get ready for school.

JT starts middle school this year - which I fondly refer to as a "black hole." However, I have to admit that I loved the one junior high that I went to for 7th and half of 8th grade. So I am trying to keep this more balanced perspective in mind.

I just know that it seems like a lot of kids have negative things happen to them during middle school - whether it's teasing and bullying, or getting sidetracked with social things and losing their way for a while, or setting the stage for adolescent sex, drugs and rock'n'roll ... But the reality is that I think hormones are running high and you go thru so many changes (physically, emotionally, socially, etc) and you lack life experience to put it all into perspective, so no wonder a lot of teens (and adults) I may talk to have negative experiences to recount.

The reality is that we probably have too much time to reflect on the nuances of it all, so it all gets magnified. And what is the meaning of life anyway? Personally, we are at the pinnacle of human existence: We're all alive, healthy, live in a suburban land where violence is extremely unusual (in our lives personally), we can eat ice cream for lunch every day, and we can read a book or play video games until we get hungry (or mom kicks us off). We have green space to go play in out our front door. We have our choice of exotic fruits from the store. We can do our little things to make the world a better place, while not having to personally put ourselves at risk... As long as we don't want to be millionaires, what else can you ask for?