EMPOWERING STUDENT WELLNESS
Shared Thankfulness
By Matt Edwards (Secondary Chaplain)
We live in a time when there is much societal polarisation on many levels, leading to people to become highly defensive and antagonistic towards others who see life differently to them. The danger is that people can lose sight of enjoying what they treasure, as the wait for the perfect setting in which to appreciate it. Sometimes this day never comes.
I recall running a social skills lesson for a Year 3 class a few years ago.
I was sharing about not letting one bad thing, ruin everything.
Numerous examples were given, and each time, every time, there was an understanding that things were better than they could have been. Through everything, there were still things to be thankful for.
I saw that giving space to reflect on these times had a dual impact. To process the past, and to see what we can still be thankful for.
When we become overwhelmed with hardship and challenging circumstances, we can so easily lose sight of what we have, all the positive things to be thankful for.
So much so, that it can reorient the way we see our lives.
In a day where so much of life is driven by ‘rights’, we can easily take things for granted if we believe that they are owed to us. Respect, money, love, freedom.
Just stop for a second and think about this question: Imagine that everything you have (e.g. kids, friends, cars, house(s), social groups, tv, internet, clothes, running water, inside toilets that you don’t have to squat over, hot water, books, free time, silence, conversations) was a privilege to have, and you deserved none of it.
Would your level of thankfulness for these things change?
When we appreciate what we have, and share that thankfulness with others, we not only see how fortunate we are. We also invite others into a shared experience of thankfulness. This can be really powerful for our kids. We can help to lift their eyes, so that they can share in the joys of life with us. Because, although bad things do happen, they don’t have to ruin the good things.
For more useful information on this topic visit the below links:
https://bhcs.vic.schooltv.me/content/blog/32-things-you-should-be-grateful
https://greatergood.berkeley.edu/article/item/teenagers_are_yours_more_entitled_than_grateful
WELLBEING RESOURCES
We know that it can sometimes be hard to find the necessary resources in relation to mental health, bullying and family violence, especially when things are tough. For this reason, the School has a small webpage with links related to health and wellbeing resources. This can be found on the School's website under Other Resources or can be found here.