On one corner of my desk, a tiny yellow T-shirt sits among assorted memorabilia collected for my daughter's high school graduation party. Printed on the front is a picture of a Precious Moments graduate and the message: "Class of 1999 -- the last class of the 1900s."
I still remember the day Jamie's kindergarten teacher handed out those T-shirts.
"How cute," is what we parents said. "Imagine that!"
"No way," is what we thought. "No way will the end of the millenium arrive in my lifetime. No way will I ever be old enough to parent a teen. No way will these adorable tots conquer K12 grades to grow tall and talented enough to fill out a graduation gown."
We were wrong, of course. The class of '99 graduated in June amidst the furor of Y2K predictions. We laughed over Jamie's display of photos, awards for high school academics and the assorted paraphernalia of 13 years of public and private education. And we marvelled that this accomplished young woman ever fit into such a tiny shirt.
Sadly, one of those kindergartners didn't make it to graduation. She died last year driving too fast on a country road.
"How sad," we all said at the time. We shook our heads and remembered other untimely deaths and lamented one of the saddest of parents' issues: the horrifying risks that teens too often take in their conviction that they will live forever.
To be honest, though, I'm not really much different. I may have learned to drive more carefully, but I still live too fast. And when I do, I risk losing the impact I can have on my kids' lives and learning.
We parents too often squander the time when our children are in school because we think they'll be there forever. Is my daughter not catching on to fourth-grade math? No problem; she'll get it eventually.
Do I suspect my son's not learning anything from this year's teacher? Oh well, not every teacher can be great; he can make it up with a good teacher next year. Our busy lives don't leave time for long homework sessions. And school politics? Who wants to mess with that? Maybe next year, we say, or the year after that.
As we fly through our days at work and our evening support groups, errands and housework, it's easy to dismiss the needs of our kids. We risk a lot when we do. After all, they only get one chance to learn ninth-grade science and only one chance at mastering advanced math.
And we only get one chance to help them find where they can shine. We recklessly reason that it won't matter if we miss a performance or two. We console ourselves that there will always be another game, another season, another chance to get involved.
But we're wrong. The day is coming -- faster than you think -- when there won't be another anything, at least not at school. Take it from a mother in the midst of a whirlwind countdown to launch.
If you don't want to show up at graduation with a long list of regrets, start now to make the most of every school year. As this semester winds down, take the time to choose next year's courses, teachers and schools carefully. Encourage your child to try something new and vow to be there, win or lose.
I hate to be tedious, but it has to be said: They do grow up before you know it. And I've got the T-shirt to prove it.
Linda Wacyk is a former EduGuide editor from Grand Ledge, Michigan.