Have you ever had to wait for something? Maybe the wait was for a new toy, a car, the end of a Uni degree, someone to come home or just 30 seconds for your porridge to heat up in the microwave! Whatever it was, we all know what it’s like to have to wait. In education, we often hear that this current generation expects instant gratification like no other. If we want something, we should be able to have it now. With everything available at our fingertips, how inconvenient it is to have to wait! Whether there is any truth in that or not, we mustn’t stop seeking opportunities to develop patience and perseverance in our students, our children, and ourselves.
I’d like to take a moment to give a shout out to our dedicated and hard-working SRC. In Term 4 of last year, Miss Oates and I took our newly elected SRC away to the South Coast for a leadership summit, some team building and planning meetings etc. Amongst the whale watching, beach footy, karaoke and fish n chips, the SRC decided that they would like to focus their fundraising efforts on a P.A system for our school that could be used to play music and make announcements during lunchtimes and special occasions. Even though the goal was potentially expensive, complicated and a long-term project, the SRC were unanimous in their desire to set their sights on a P.A system. This impressed me as I knew that there were some senior students on our SRC who might never see the fruits of their labour if the project was to take more than a year or so. So, over the course of last 12 months, and under the guidance of Miss Oates, those students have researched, contacted other schools, spoken with consultants, trialled products and persevered with fundraising efforts to the point that their goal is nearly complete. They are so close now!
How impressive it is to see young people who can set a big goal and see it through to completion. I’m sure that there would have been many times in the project’s infancy when the P.A seemed too far out of reach; where the money they had at that time could have been used for some instantaneous gratification. Yet meeting after meeting they endured because they knew that there was something bigger that they were working for. It was a project that would benefit all students at PCS for the long term. So even though the job isn’t fully compete, I want to congratulate our SRC for the outstanding effort of working in unity towards a difficult goal for the benefit of others and not just themselves. Keep going and don’t give up!
Romans 5:3-5 says ‘We also have joy with our troubles, because we know that these troubles produce patience. And patience produces character, and character produces hope. And this hope will never disappoint us, because God has poured out his love to fill our hearts. He gave us his love through the Holy Spirit, whom God has given to us.’ The little moments where our students and children have to exercise patience are precious and oh so important. If we want to raise a generation of young people who can set their mind to a task and not waver when the going gets tough, then let’s not be so quick to provide instant gratification. The 2-year-old tantrum waiting for dinner is a very real thing, but so is the fact that God requires of us to be people who can endure, be of strong character and keep our eyes focused on the big picture.
So, if a day comes at PCS when you arrive to the sound of music, know that it was the result of a lot of patience and hard work. Find a student and say thank you and well done. What an incredible group of young people we have at PCS. They are the fruits of your labour and are committed to blessing others, which is even better than a new P.A system!
Have a great week everyone.
Glen