Thought for the Week: At the school gate

Daniel Khan – 9th October 2026

Several mornings a week I drop my grandchildren at primary school and today, while I was standing in the playground, I realised there is something rather wonderful about the primary school drop-off.

For a few minutes each morning, the school gate becomes a little community. Children arrive with bags bouncing on their backs, coats half-zipped, water bottles swinging from their hands. Some are full of excitement about the day ahead and others are, perhaps, still thinking about what happened at breakfast. For many of them the future is simply too far away to worry about, after all, there are games to be played with friends! They are wonderfully present in the moment.

And then there are the grown-ups. Parents, grandparents and carers gather at the gate, exchanging news, comparing notes and solving the small problems of family life. There are smiles and occasional takeaway coffees, hurried conversations and, often, someone saying, "Don't worry, I'll pick them up." There are offers of help, practical kindnesses, and friendships which have grown almost without anyone noticing.

Yet beneath the ordinary bustle, there can be very different emotions. One child may be running through the gate with excitement, while another is clinging tightly to a parent's hand, worried about what the day will bring. One parent may be chatting cheerfully with friends while inwardly carrying a burden that nobody else knows about. We don't always see what people bring with them to the school gate. Perhaps that is why the school gate can be a surprisingly good picture of the Christian life.

Jesus tells us, "Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own." (Matthew 6:34).

There is something of a childlike quality in the invitation to live in the present moment. We can spend so much of our lives anticipating what might happen next that we can miss the grace of what God is giving us today. There is a freedom in that which we, as adults, can easily lose.

Look again at the school gate and there is another lesson, that we need one another. The person who offers to walk a child into school, the grandparent who helps with the younger ones, the parent who notices that someone looks troubled and asks, "Are you all right?” - these small acts of kindness make a community. The Church is meant to be like that too. Not simply a collection of individuals who happen to worship in the same building, but a people who encourage one another and offer practical help. As St Paul writes,

"Carry each other's burdens, and in this way, you will fulfil the law of Christ." (Galatians 6:2).

And then there is the gate itself. Every morning the children arrive and are entrusted to someone else for a while. Parents and carers let go of their little hands and watch them disappear through the doors. They must go in, grow, learn, make friends, make mistakes, and discover the world for themselves. And perhaps that is what the Christian life looks like too most of the time. Sometimes we need someone to walk with us, we must learn and grow, and sometimes we are the ones who can offer a helping hand. And through it all, we trust that Jesus is there.

So, the next time you find yourself standing at the school gate watching the children rush through the doors, perhaps pause for a moment. Notice the excitement. Notice the worries. Notice the conversations and the kindnesses. Notice the people who are quietly looking after one another. And perhaps give thanks that this little, ordinary community is showing us something of God's kingdom, a place where we are invited to live in the present, to trust the one who holds the future, and to walk together.

Daniel Khan

Licensed Lay Minister