It is hard to believe that I sit here writing the last newsletter article of the year. In 10 days’ time, Christmas will have come and gone for another year. Where has the year gone? 2022 has been a wonderful year filled with many successes and achievements across so many areas of the School.
I have always believed, it takes a village to raise a child and I am grateful to so many volunteers and supporters of the School that have done so much for our students in the Grammar Village. You have helped champion our students in classrooms, on sports fields, and on stages. You have helped them choose the harder right instead of the easier wrong. You have taught them to be true to themselves, and to be brave, but also that it is ok to be vulnerable.
It is a community that has seen our students learn to be fair, to be kind, to help others, have integrity and value community. Those lessons have been taught in so many ways by so many. The School motto – Nisi Dominus Frustra – sums it up. You have helped provide a strong foundation for them to launch into life. Thank you.
I encourage our students to continue to challenge inequity and injustice and to know that they have a voice.
John Lewis said it far better than I;
“We all live in the same house, we all must be part of the effort to hold down our house. When you see something that is not right, not fair, not just…do something about it. Say something. Have the courage. Have the backbone. Get in the way. Walk with the wind. It’s all going to work out.”
I would also like to thank our parents. I know that you choose to entrust us to care for your children. I have always viewed educating children as a great privilege. Thank you for giving us that opportunity.
Our Community is what makes Grammar unique, what makes us strong, what gives us our purpose; what has kept us strong for 176 years. What will keep us strong for 176 more?
As you head off into holidays, I’d like to share with you a few wise and enlightening words from Robert Fulghum’s book All I Really Need to Know I Learned in Kindergarten. As he states;
“words for kindergarten children that are equally relevant and meaningful for a lifetime of sharing this sandpit we call life.
- Wash your hands before you eat
- Share everything – don’t keep the best bits for yourself but hand them on.
- Play fair
- Put things back where you found them
- Clean up your own messes, both literal and metaphorically
- Don’t take things that are not yours
- Say sorry when you have hurt someone.
- A nap is a very good idea – take them when you can
- When you go out in the world, watch out for traffic, hold hands and stick together
- Remember those Dick and Jane books and the first word in them – LOOK – take it all in and appreciate the small things – they will become the BIG things
- Think what a better world it would be if we all had milk and biscuits at 3 p.m. and then laid down for a nap.
- And it is still true. No matter how old you are – when you go out into the world, it is best to hold hands and stick together.
I wish you all a Merry Christmas and a safe holiday break
God’s Blessings to you all.
Nicholas Foster
Acting Headmaster