Can you believe in three short weeks, the kids will be off to school again? Where does the time go? I'm happy to say my children are excited about the start of a new school year. My ten year old, Lexi is always a bundle of energy, inquiring constantly, "When are we going shopping for school supplies?" And even my 16 year old Justin is showing a lot of enthusiasm! Just the other day he told me it gave him chills at football practice hearing the band and the drum section warming up for the new year. Hopefully, he's just as excited about hitting the books as he is about hitting the football field, if you know what I mean! And although it was way way waaaay back when, I remember the excitement that I felt as a child for the beginning of a new school year. But things are a bit different now than when I grew up. And I have to constantly remind myself of that as I try my best at this journey called "parenting." The pressures facing our children are ten-fold what we faced on the school campus thirty years ago. The closest thing to substance abuse at my high school was the occasional cigarette that someone sneaked into the girls bathroom. Nowadays, our kids have the pressures of marijuana, cocaine, meth, ecstasy, prescription med's right from mom and dad's bathroom, and God only knows what else! And isn't it funny that once upon a time, the biggest fear a mother had for her teen aged daughter was getting pregnant. Today there's a lot worse that can happen to our little girls (and boys)... how about contracting HIV or other sexually transmitted diseases? Yes, there's a lot more for us to talk about these days with our children of the 21st century. And keeping open the lines of communication has never been more important. That's my daily prayer, especially as we embark upon a new school year, that we as parents learn to listen to our children, and to truly know the value of talking with them and not just talking "at" them. I'm a little guilty of the latter at times. As our children head back to class, yes they'll face new challenges... a tougher math class, a stricter teacher, SAT's and ACT's, and perhaps even a bully or two. But I pray that my kids know that we're here to face those challenges together. Here's to a successful 2007-08 school term!
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Sweet Life
So many times I have done stories here at KPLC and been touched by the wonderful generosity of Southwest Louisiana. None, more so, than the story of Elijah Miller.
Elijah is a 15-month-old Lake Charles boy who was in desperate need of a multi-organ transplant. On Father's Day the family received a call that the organs were available, but with just four hours to get to Washington D.C., they watched helplessly as their opportunity slipped past. The next week they made a call to KPLC. It was a story that any number of us would have been happy to cover, but I was the one blessed to be a part of Elijah's miracle.
The community response was overwhelming. The Christus St. Patrick Foundation secured a grant for five-thousand dollars, companies set up collection boxes, everyday citizens gave from their hearts and their pocketbooks, and children set up lemonade stands to give to the little boy they had never met.
I went to Jennings last week to interview three young girls, Mikal Jeffcoat, Hailie Dugas, and Aimee McNally. Mikal had watched the report on 7News Nightcast and the next day got to work enlisting the help of her friends, making fliers, and prayer cards for what turned out to be the most profitable lemonade stand in Southwest Louisiana. The girls raised over 18-hundred dollars that has been sent to the Christus St. Patrick Fund and now they watch anxiously for updates on little Elijah's condition.
In this day and age where we hear so many bad things about our young people, these girls and all of the children who went above and beyond to help a child in need deserve all of the praise we have to offer.
So here's to all of you who showed us once again, what a "sweet life" it is when we watch out for one another.
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