Assistant Principal
Jacky Guardascione
Retreat? Re-treat? What is it and how can I do this?
Every year, Principals, Assistant Principals and Religious Education Coordinators in our systems are invited to attend overnight retreats. Last Thursday and Friday, I attended The Mary MacKillop’s Spirituality Centre in Kincumber for the annual Assistant Principal’s Retreat.
Retreats hold deep religious significance across many faith traditions, offering a sacred pause from daily life to reconnect with the divine, reflect inwardly, and renew spiritual purpose. For Catholics, we find the idea of retreat in our sacred scripture where Jesus often withdrew to solitary places to pray. By doing so, Jesus modeled the value of retreat for spiritual clarity. As humans, when we take time to retreat we are able to deepen our relationship with God. Retreats foster reflection, confession and discernment for where you want to go in life.
At their core, religious retreats are about intentional withdrawal—not to escape life, but to return to it with greater clarity, peace, and purpose.
The focus for last week’s retreat was the ‘Transcendentals’ of our faith. Transcendentals are ‘Windows’ into ways we can see God in our world. We find God in the Three core transcendentals:
Truth – That which corresponds to reality and satisfies our intellect.
Goodness – That which fulfills its purpose and satisfies our will.
Beauty – That which delights the senses and spirit through harmony and form.
Aristotle believed that when we pursue truth, goodness, and beauty, we align ourselves with God and the very structure of reality. He also believed that despite the situation or object, Truth, Goodness and Beauty can be found.
As busy people, we cannot all find time for regular retreat experiences, but we can try to weave ‘retreat’ into our daily lives.
Start the Day with Stillness not Socials - Don’t grab your phone when you open your eyes, instead offer a silent prayer of thanks to begin your day.
Create Mini-Moments - Set your alarm so that throughout the day, you get up and walk away from your desk. Look outside a window or close your eyes and take a gratitude check-in.
Change purpose of Routines - use daily tasks like washing dishes or hanging washing out as a chance to listen to a podcast or prayer.
End the Day with ‘Thanks’ - light a candle and take time to give thanks for the day that was and seek guidance for the gift of tomorrow.
🖤💛❤️ NAIDOC Week 2025 🖤💛❤️
NAIDOC Week has a powerful and inspiring history and the ongoing fight for recognition of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples. On 26 January in 1928, while Australia marked 150 years since the First Fleet’s arrival, a group of Aboriginal leaders held a Day of Mourning in Sydney. This day evolved into Aborigines Day, observed annually on the Sunday before Australia Day. Throughout the years, this day has continued to evolve.
Today, NAIDOC (National Aboriginal and Islander Day Observance Committee) Week is now held annually in early July and celebrates First Nations culture, history, and achievements. This theme for 2025 is “The Next Generation: Strength, Vision & Legacy” and celebrates The strength of Elders and ancestors who paved the way, The vision of communities shaping a just and inclusive future and The legacy being carried forward by young First Nations leaders.
At STMM we will celebrate this day on Thursday where we will welcome in The Glow Squad, a group of young indigenous dancers who are keen to teach us how to CELEBRATE as a community through dance. Look out for these photos on socials!
Looking for a holiday activity, be sure to check out lots of events in Sydney as part of the NAIDOC Week Celebrations check out this site.
NAIDOC Week isn’t just a celebration—it’s a living legacy of resistance, pride, and cultural strength.
School Photos - Tues 19 August
Dear Parents,
School photography day is coming up soon. Group and portrait photographs can be purchased by following the link below or by returning the order envelope with your payment to our photographer on school photo day.
Two easy ways to purchase:
Visa, MasterCard or PayPal
Cash – complete the envelope supplied and return it to our photographer on photo day
Or visit: www.advancedlife.com.au
And enter online order code: DLL 9XC C4Z
School photography information:
Online orders - do not require an envelope returned to your school
Sibling Photos - Don’t forget to pre-order your sibling photos online up to 24 hours before photo day. We provide your school with a list of sibling orders right up to the day of photography, so no one misses out. If you miss the online order deadline, you can submit a completed sibling order envelope first thing in the morning of the day of photography, so your school is aware you want the photo taken and can bring your children together in time for it. Sibling photographs only apply to children enrolled at your school.
Late fees - a late fee will be applied to each package purchased after photo day due to the additional cost of producing these packages separately
Package delivery - School photographs will be returned approximately 6 weeks after the day of photography. Please note this delivery time frame is dependent on proofing and additional photography days at your school.
Previous Years’ photos - Past years’ photographs including sports, co-curricular and representative groups are also available to order under the “previous years or group photo” tabs at your school’s advancedorder site when you click on the “Order School Photos Here” button above. You can also order past packages, portrait images and gifts from your child’s unique, individual and secure advancedyou image archive site using the unique 9 digit image code found on packages you have ordered in the past
advancedlife would like to express our appreciation to St Margaret Mary's Primary School for placing your trust in us. Please remember we offer a 100% money back guarantee on our products to ensure your peace of mind. We would also love to receive your feedback or resolve any issues you may experience as fast as possible, to ensure your satisfaction. If you have any questions, comments or feedback relating to your advancedlife experience please contact us at: www.advancedlife.com.au/contact
I would like to take this opportunity to wish all of our families a safe, enjoyable and restful holiday.
Stay safe!
Jacky Guardascione
Acting Assistant Principal