An experienced sailor knows to pack her foul weather gear, even if she sets sail on a cloudless day.
We start the school year with grand expectations, high hopes, and the best of intentions. For most teachers, most students, and most parents, the First Day of School is as cloudless a school day as they could hope for.
But our voyage will hit storms. We will have to navigate around treacherous objects, we’ll spend long sleepless nights at sea, and some of us might even be required to do battle with pirates intent on blocking our way.
The promise of that first cloudless day may seem lost. But an experienced sailor knows the truth. She has provisioned for these obstacles, not knowing what might come her way as she navigates the open sea. Her provisioning means that she will reach the next cloudless day, if not unscathed, then at least intact.
Begin well, and enjoy the joy of beginning. But be well-provisioned for the obstacles that might lay ahead.