I Hate LOVE  

The Beginning of School!

 

You know why I HATE the beginning of school- getting up earlier, pressure, deadlines, dressing formally, and less personal time.

 

Why I do l LOVE the beginning of school? I have many lofty goals for this year, and they can only come to fruition when the energized teachers and students return.

 

However, there is a deeper reason why I'm thrilled that we're back at school.

 

It's Discipline! School brings discipline back into the lives of students (and teachers!). People who accomplish something that is truly great- whether they are athletes, scientists or rabbis- only do so through discipline.

 

Success at school requires discipline. Students can sometimes get by "winging it", but without discipline, they won't create the new program, get into the top tier yeshiva or college, or win the respect of their teachers and classmates.

 

Discipline is hard, but it's what one needs to succeed in life. It doesn't mean never having fun. It means that you control events- they don't control you. It means that you plan in advance. It means that you do the absolute best job that you can do.

 

How can parents help their children develop discipline? 

 

1)    Get to school on time. That means students have to get up early enough. If they start the day on a good note (davening being a key component), they feel they can deal with any challenge that arises. To do this, you child must ...

 

2)    Go to bed at a reasonable hour. I know parents often go to bed earlier than their teens. Together, set a bed time, which at times may have to be (jointly) extended.

 

3)    Weekends aren't a vacation from discipline. Though they can get up somewhat later, a focused, productive day begins relatively early and with tefilla. The prerequisite is going to sleep at a reasonable hour, even on Friday and Saturday nights.  

 

4)    Not waiting until the last minute when it comes to assignments and studying. Help your child learn to use the quieter nights to do the work they won't have time for on the busier nights.

 

May Hashem take notice of our efforts to add more discipline to our lives during this preparatory month of Ellul and enable us to have a year filled with that feeling of accomplishment that can only come from hard work and discipline.

 

 

Shabbat Shalom,

 

Rabbi Perry Tirschwell

Head of School