Living with Strength and Kindliness
May you be blessed with good friends!
Year 7s had a fun-filled day last Tuesday when they participated in their Year 7 Retreat Day!
The day focused on the development of their own spirituality, their sense of belonging to the St Joseph’s College School community and provided them with the opportunity to broaden their social connections with one another.
As part of the introduction to the day students listened to the advice of Kid President, a prominent YouTube figure pre pandemic whose audience was young people. Kid President offered some great advice to our Year 7s in the form of ‘things we could say more often!’ His suggestions are certainly not limited for use by young people, they can also serve as some great advice for us adults!
10 Things We Could Say More Often!
- I’m Sorry. There’s plenty of hurt in the world. It can be enfranchising to both parties when one says sorry.
- How can I help you? What’s the risk of being a servant friend, leader, teacher, parent?
- I don’t know. We don’t know everything and we don’t have to.
- I could be wrong? Holding fast to our ideas and our supposed certainties can hold us back. Admitting our shortcomings allows us to be more reconciling and more compassionate and eliminates unnecessary alienation of others.
- What do you think? It’s nice to have a different perspective for a change. It might be better than the one you had in your mind.
- I love you. It’s important to take the risk and reap the rewards of telling someone that you love them!
- Tell me more. Showing a genuine interest in others, learning about what makes others tick, cultivates an understanding between people and breaks down the barriers of difference.
- Well that sucks! Sometimes it’s okay to not have the answer, to not be able to solve everything that passes our way. Sometimes it’s enough to show a little empathy.
- Let’s give it a try. This is a very hope-filled statement, it’s about the future, it’s about asking what’s next with openness and with trust.
- ______________________ , saying nothing at all! We’ve all probably faced the times when we need to fill an awkward silence. Our entire Western culture is a long winded, endemic line of chatter. Saying nothing at all, allowing an intentional silence may just be a better way of saying it!
Let us pray…
May you be blessed with good friends.
May you learn to be a good friend to yourself.
May you be able to journey to that place in your soul where there is great love, warmth, feeling, and forgiveness.
May this change you.
May it transfigure that which is negative, distant, or cold in you.
May you be brought in to the real passion, kinship, and affinity of belonging.
May you treasure your friends.
May you be good to them and may you be there for them; may they bring you all the blessing, challenges, truth, and light that you need for your journey.
May you never be isolated.
May you always be in the gentle nest of belonging with your anam cara.
Amen
From Anam Cara: A Book Of Celtic Wisdom by John O'Donohue
Kirrilee Westblade
College Leader - Catholic Identity