The school year is just around the corner—about a month away. In our house, we’re getting ready for first and third grade. And I’m remembering: these are the years when kids start to notice things.
Who wears the same shoes every day. Who’s got the fresh gear from Tysons or Pentagon City. Who’s still rocking the worn Pokémon backpack from last year, and who shows up with the latest tech, water bottle and all. Some kids are round, some wiry. Some wear braces. Others carry birthmarks and conspicuous differences.
This is also when the social sorting begins. Athletes and gamers. Kids with phones and kids without. Some roam free on Roblox; others still play outside after dinner. Some get left out. Others find their clique and guard the borders. These are years of both astonishing cruelty and surprising kindness. Years when the heart begins to stretch or harden.
You don’t need a preacher telling you how to raise your kids. God entrusted them to you, not me. But here’s the conversation I’m having with my girls—the same one my grandmother had with my mom, and my mom with me:
“Remember, you’re no better than anyone else. Red, yellow, black, or white—they’re all as precious in God’s sight as you. Don’t join the mockers. Look for the lonely. Befriend the least of these—and you’ll make a friend of God.”
As the school year draws near, God bless your parenting, your patience, and the everyday choices that shape wee souls.
Maranatha,
Jordy
