Assistant Principal (Secondary)

Back in ‘my day’, I was playing sport at a state level; I could have made the AFL….? 

It’s hard to walk forwards while facing backwards.

As a PE teacher I often find myself having conversations with people about the sport they’ve played in their younger days. For many, it’s a sense of pride, for others it brings a sense of nostalgia and good times. However, a common theme that I’ve noticed is the further away from the actual event, the better they’ve seemed. 

Let me explain. As a teenager I played rugby for my school, we were actually pretty good and won some state titles. While that does sound impressive, it sounds far more impressive than it actually was. Playing rugby in the 90s in Melbourne was not very competitive. To make it to the state finals often meant playing a total of three qualifying games against teams that had never played before. However, if we were to ever play a NSW team (even a team that played very poorly), we would’ve been convincingly thumped. But I have heard people from my team talking later in life, many years after the actual games, mentioning that they played for the state - a slight twist of words, with elements of truth.

Now, as my age starts with a ‘4’, I’ve often had conversations with similar aged people who often gloat about their abilities as a teen or young adult. Many people talk about the fact that ‘they could have made the AFL but….(insert story of misfortune here)’. By no means am I playing down others' misfortune; however, I often notice an equation: ‘ the older they get, the better they were’. While this rule is not absolute (i.e., it doesn’t apply for everyone), what seems to happen is that many people are unable to move forward in their lives story and future accomplishments, as they are looking backwards at life, whilst walking forwards in life.

The past two years have been…..interesting (for lack of a better word). Many of the things we took for granted were taken for a period of time. For many, it was a period of loss: loss of a job, loss of financial security, loss of freedoms, loss of drive and for some, a loss of health. Emerging from this time, one can be tempted to look back to 2019 with rose coloured lenses, looking at what they’ve lost and wishing to be where they were (even if they weren’t overly happy back in 2019?!). 

For me personally, 2022 has been a year of many new beginnings. I started to serve at the community of Aitken (something that I hold dear). It’s been a time to consciously turn around from the past two years and strive to walk forwards, making the steps in front of me (both metaphorically and literally) better than the last. Over this year I’ve been very warmly welcomed by all of the Aitken community. In many of these conversations, people have mentioned the trying conditions of the past two years. It seems like a black cloud that still lingers long after it has actually passed. 

The term many politicians use is ‘moving forward’. While this term can be a politically charged statement and often said with a fair amount of political spin, I believe that in it its raw form, the phrase holds some power. While not wanting to downplay the effects of the past two years, I feel it's time to consciously choose to move forward, to walk forward, to see the truly new opportunities that are in front of us. To walk forward in our life with optimism and hope. As I am approaching the end of my first year at Aitken, I just wanted to say that I’ve been truly and warmly welcomed into the Aitken Community. I’m looking forward to this next season of Aitken: moving forward together as a community. Again, I’d like to say thank you to all.

Mr Chris Graham

Assistant Principal (Secondary)