Hello, students of PT 101!!  Today wraps up Homecoming week at AHS and so, in the spirit of the week, we will just lighten up on the "lecture" and celebrate.  I always find myself taking a walk down memory lane during this particular time of the year.  The games, the parade, the burning of the A, the coronation, the daily "themes" for the week . . . all the same traditions that have been around for decades.  Whether you are an alumni of AHS (as I am from the year . . . never mind!) or spent your high school years somewhere else, I am sure you'll agree that we are blessed to live in a nation that fosters such traditions and freedoms.  A drive around town yesterday, on the anniversary of the 9-11 tragedy, indicated that the sense of patriotic gratitude is alive and well as the Stars and Stripes were waving from everywhere.  It seemed a perfect match for HOMECOMING!!

Kids . . . I write this in advance of Saturday's paper, so I am not sure the outcome of the game, the band performance, the dance, etc.  But, regardless of all that, I want to tell you this.  Enjoy this time of your lives and embrace the intimacy of growing up in a small Midwestern town.  Two of my children grew up in the city where they attended and graduated from Millard North High School.  I will tell you that they have often wished they could have had the small town experiences and traditions of their younger brothers, who spent their high school years and graduated from AHS.  Just remember . . . the grass is not always greener on the other side (if you don't know this cliche' . . . ask your parents!)  Go DAWGS!!

Yours in health,

Karen