Educationally Speaking - Our commitment must not waver

Raising our youth can be a lot like the Chinese bamboo tree. I was reminded of this when Ken Brower, a Fallbrook High School counselor, shared these insights with parents of incoming ninth grade students at a recent orientation. I also know that the illustration applies to more than incoming students.

After planting a seed, watering and fertilizing it for a whole year, nothing happens. The second year you water and fertilize it, nothing happens. In fact, this pattern repeats itself until sometime during the fifth year when the bamboo tree sprouts and grows ninety feet in six weeks.

Life is muc...