When last I wrote, we were heading into the final days of 2015 and thinking about the messages we can send our children. I suggested it was time to send messages of encouragement to balance the despair associated with recent media reports about events around the globe. My congratulations to all for your work in adding many new comments to my stream from December. In total, I received 12 comments with words of encouragement, quotes from other authors, and inspirational advice for the children of today. It’s an important practice in order to balance the lives of our youngest to include more hope and resilience. Thank you to all for your contributions! I’ll be sharing these with students in some upcoming meetings. You can still add your ideas to this list at any moment of inspiration!
With 2016 comes the joy and anticipation of a new calendar year, and the mid-point of the school year. We have many things happening even in the short stretch of days between now and our February break. It may seem like a short time, but there will be many activities and events that will fill it with energy and engagement at all levels. The upcoming end of the semester is a critical junction in the year. We see it as a point of ignition to begin applying skills learned to new and increasingly complex problems.
My best wishes to all in the coming weeks and also my heartiest welcome to our new families. I was not with you on Monday due to finishing recruiting tasks, but look forward to joining you for other opportunities for meeting and greeting in the coming weeks. Might I suggest to all new parents that next week’s PTO meeting would be a great time to get introduced. I know the rest of the school community joins me in welcoming you!!
Finally, my thanks to PTO for their generous support of the visit of Patch Adams. We had wonderful involvement in his visit on the last day before vacation. It was a truly inspirational opportunity for many of our students in Middle and High School. We took some time to laugh at ourselves and also better understand how we might move to deeper understanding of our role in changing prevailing paradigms. And, along with a couple of other brave students, I took a turn getting into Patch’s enormous “underpants.” Patch shared with the audience that he has invited heads of state into this huge garment and hopes to one day invite the pope to jump into them as well. My additional thanks to the TEDx team for making this happen on the day!!