Last week, we were reminded by Mr Valese that “God doesn’t make junk” and that every single person is a valuable human being. We know that many of our children and teens don’t see themselves that way, so how might we best support them in valuing themselves in healthy ways?
Each Monday morning, our Head of College, Paul Valese sends all students an email. This is what he sent this week.
We looked a little last week at what Dr Harris had to say about encouraging children to be explorers.
Each year, I enjoy watching the Australian of the Year Awards, where the achievements and contributions of highly respected Australian citizens from diverse disciplines are recognised.
Welcome to the start of the 2019 school year. For some students, it’s a return to the comfort and normality of their regular school routine; a time to catch up with old friends, while looking forward to the excitement of new classes, new teachers and new learning.
One of the things that continually fascinates me is the interconnection between body, soul and spirit. If we want to live well-balanced lives, we, and our children need to nurture and be nurtured in each of these areas. My own children are all adults now and one thing I can vouch for is that childhood passes very quickly.
For some school-leavers (and their parents) the next few weeks will be a tense time as they await their OP results. Some will have planned what they want to do for a career and know exactly what OP they need to gain entrance to a specific course. After that, comes the wait to find out which course they’ve been accepted into. Tense times, indeed for some.
This Friday marks a very special day for our graduating year 12 students. Having spent more than 2/3 of their young lives at school, on Friday, they say farewell and start the transition to the next season of life. Like all changes, there are multiple sides. Change can be exciting, scary and stressful at the same time. As they wait to hear news of their future options, some may start to feel quite stressed.
If I were to conduct a poll among parents about how they’re feeling today, I suspect I would have more than one person tell me they were feeling overwhelmed, stressed, tense, anxious or even drowning in all the things currently happening in life. Some might say they feel scattered, fragmented, torn in several directions at once, have too much to deal with or that everything is just too hard.
When a person loses somebody close to them, friends may be unsure of how best to respond or help their friend. Most people don’t need professional help when grieving, but the love and support of good family and friends is valuable. Don’t be afraid of crying with your friend, you won’t upset him/her because they’re already upset. Your presence, love, practical support, listening ear are the most precious gifts you can give.