[vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text]Dear Flint Hill School Families,
Last weekend got me thinking about the concept of time quite a bit. Maybe it was looking ahead to daylight savings time ending and the chance to gain an hour of sleep. I thought about how often I use the word “time,” both in my normal conversations and in my weekly letters. I don’t know how many times I have started letters with, “Isn’t it amazing that we are at this point of the year?” What I really meant to say was that time had raced right by us.
Time seems to guide much of my thinking. I find myself questioning if I have the time to cut the yard before we go someplace or when can I grab some time to grade papers. I sometimes worry about the time it takes to drive to the country for one of Emily’s fiber events, or the time that it is going to take to clean out the gardens to get ready for winter. In fact, I worry whether it is the right time to do that yard work or it is a better use of my time to read a book, to preview a film for my class or time to just sit down and read the newspaper! Is that a waste of time? Are there other things I should be doing?
I think for just about all of us, particularly as parents, the idea of time is very much a factor in our lives. How many of you are running kids to practices, activities, visiting grandparents, or trying to figure out how to find time to be together as a family? So often, we will lament that time is either passing too quickly or not quickly enough. It is relentless and unchanging — it walks us forward on an endless stream.
Our greatest challenge is to control it and to take full advantage of it. If we practice this as adults, we can help our children better understand and appreciate how to deal with time. We know they are experiencing the same challenges and pressures. They may run out of time to engage in an activity they enjoy to finish a project. They can’t wait for time to pass before the holidays, a key break, a birthday, or whatever the next exciting occasion might be.
So what can we do as adults? What can we use to teach our kids about managing time and all that comes with it? Here are a few thoughts that might help.
- Take time. Take time to be with your kids and use it wisely. Spend time with them individually and together as a family. Do what they ask to do. And appreciate the fact that time with our children goes way too quickly, as I can attest to with my own family. Before you know it, they grow up, have their own children, and in some cases, may live all over the world.
- Give the gift of time. There are times we have to do this for ourselves, and we can certainly do it for other people. Try not to overschedule. Ask yourself, does this require a meeting or could it be an email or a phone call? Learn to say “No.”
- Prioritize time. We need to grab time and take full advantage of it. We have to keep focused on time as an important commodity. We don’t have to be rigid, but having priorities and managing time effectively can go a long way both for us and our children.
- Don’t wish time away. It is also important to keep it all in perspective. The time to check things off our to-do lists will be there, but the journey of life is a journey. It is not the destination at the end. It is about what we learn, experience and gain through the journey. But wishing it all away to just put certain things behind us can leave us empty and unfulfilled. So let’s find ways to enjoy all the time that we have.
If you are looking for something to fill your time this weekend, please join us on Saturday at the Holiday Shoppes. It is going to be an incredible time to be with fellow Huskies, to get into the holiday spirit and to attend one of our signature annual events. I look forward to seeing you there! I hope you will find the time to join us and to make this a most joyous weekend as we all get ready for the festive holiday season ahead!
Now, I am out of time for this note, so best wishes to you!
Sincerely,
John M. Thomas
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