T-Minus 3 hours and counting

So, in approximately 3 hours or so we will be released from school and off for spring break. Needless to say, the natives are restless.....very restless, and I would have to also say the vast majority of the teachers are pretty ready for this break as well. To be honest though, it scares me a bit as to how quickly the time goes by. It seems like only yesterday that the school year began, and here we are 6 weeks from another graduation and the end of yet another school year. It's just crazy to me that we are already here at the end when it seems like we just began....but as I sit here and think, I draw the conclusion that life is really just a series of beginnings and endings....I am reminded of the song "Closing Time" by the band Semisonic...there's a line in the song that says "every new beginning comes from some other beginning's end" and boy does that really ring true. It got me thinking on beginnings and endings and how they really are interrelated. The end of the school year brings the beginning of summer...the end of summer brings the beginning of the school year etc....and so it goes. Sometimes I get so caught up in the cycle of beginning to end that I miss the stuff in between....for example, my kids can now read and write words, add and subtract, and they can even tell time on a regular, analog clock. It's quite impressive if I do say so myself. Somehow, Thanksgiving, Christmas, Valentine's Day, Easter etc...have all come and gone, and I feel as if I have somehow missed them all, yet I have the memories of those events....but was I really there or was I just going through the motions because they were just a series of events....beginnings and endings like the day to day tasks. I am really pondering this perspective, as I reflect upon this past year and have come to the conclusion that I am likely not alone. In this face-paced world we live in, it's easy to just get into a routine and go through the motions, but is that really living? Is that quality of life? I don't think so.....my resolve during this week off, is to somehow find a way to regain my focus and channel all of my energies into making sure I am in the present, living all moments good and bad to the best of my ability, and to make sure the people that I love and care about know how much I love and care about them. Life is short, and you never know how much time is left....for any of us. So I would encourage you all to make peace with your past, live in the present, and prepare for your future (just in case you make it there)....then sit back and enjoy the ride!