I always consider the first day of school to be a preliminary New Years because that’s when all the resolutions are made by students and staff alike.

It’s always fun to watch students make promises that this is the year they’re going to get organized, stop procrastinating, get their work in… you know… all those good habits we’ve been promising ourselves for decades. Sometimes they can get it together enough (especially seniors as they know their marks matter for post-secondary admissions), but often enough, the slope is slippery and moves quick.

By mid-October, we find out whether old habits die hard or whether there’s a concerted effort to really make things different. The likelihood of slipping into the same old routine is significantly high, so the year tends to end just the same.

However, it’s the hope of a new year that is needed.

Regardless of what our circumstances bring, a fresh start is necessary—a chance to do things different. To be different.

To put away what once was and to move towards what could be.

My contention with today’s world of holding everyone under a digital microscope is we do not allow people to move on from their mistakes. Sure, we can hold them accountable (and that’s important), but we don’t allow them to move on when they truly desire it.

Even if things don’t change in the end, there should be an opportunity to try… whether that date is September 1st, January 1st, or next week.

And if it doesn’t work; then we try again.