Fly, fly little dove

By Mariana Conde

After these weeks of school vacation everyone, especially the students' moms, are ready for the return to routine.

Seeing the little backs of our cherubs walking away with backpacks in tow, leaving the sacred morning hours available to take care of our work, home and adult activities, is priceless. Or is it: again, jolting at inclement hours of the morning, dozing bodies to shove into mouths still with traces of dried drool, a quesadilla and half a shake, rushing from one evening activity to another, the stretch and shrink of getting homework done; the futile struggle to get back to pre-Christmas bedtime. Normal student functions that, in some way or another, are actually ours. 

Schools constantly send messages about the importance of fostering autonomy and a sense of responsibility in children, allowing them to learn from their mistakes, to live with the consequences of their actions. Parents are quick to agree that these are indispensable values for the lives of our children.