As much as I hate when school starts and my babies (that aren’t babies at all) go back to school, there is something very New Beginning about the whole process that I can get behind. Some of the guilt is alleviated when, as a writer, I can work with a clear conscience that I’m not letting anyone’s summer expectations down, everyone is taken care of, and I can do my writing in peace. It’s a good thing, right? Right?!

Then why do I dread it so much? This is what I have asked myself every single school year since my littles started...and I have one in her second year of COLLEGE now...so I should be fairly experienced by now.

I think it comes down to this, whether I’m writing full-time or have a 9-5 job in an office: freedom is precious to me. And I like having easy access to my kids. Enough to homeschool? No, I’m not brave enough, nor do I trust my teaching skills enough to pull that off.

It’s a farewell to another season of life, not just the weather around us, but a time of play put to an end, and I struggle with that.

Next year my eighth grader might not be as cuddly or into Fortnite (please, God!) as this summer. My college student might not live at home in the summer. It’s change, change, change, all the way around.

I’m trying to make my peace with it. I’m not there yet, if you can’t tell. But I’ll get there. It won’t be by drinking Pumpkin Spice Lattes, but maybe a Sea Salt Caramel would help...I doubt it, but it’s worth a try.

What do you do to acclimate to change?