Wednesday was a brutal one in the garden. Temperatures neared 30°C (86°F) and 125 kph (78 mph) wind whipped up billowing clouds of dust and flattened plants. There was nothing I could do but hope I’d watered enough last week and tied up the tall plants well enough that they could recover afterwards. When the sun set and the wind died down, I ventured out to survey the damage. As I feared, the plants were limp and battered. I watered them well overnight, and most looked refreshed by morning, ready to face another day of sun and wind.

It’s a lot like sending the kids off to school each day. It’s a harsh environment—they have to navigate school work, buses, and relationships with peers and teachers. They need these challenges to grow, just as plants need the sun and air, but some days the wind blows too hard. A new teacher, a friend who has moved away, a taunt in the lunch room…as a parent, you know these things will happen, and there is nothing you can do except hope you’ve given your children enough love and support to recover afterwards. They come home flat and battered, and you give them some extra TLC so they’re ready to go back and face it again the next day.