Welcome to the Term 3! This is where the wonder happens.
In sport, the third quarter is known as the championship quarter and in Term 3, students and staff have had their half-time break and have run out with a more focused game plan. This is true for everyone except for students in Year 12. These Year 12s are, to continue the analogy, on the last leg of a mountain bike race. For over eleven years they have been riding up hill and it’s been a challenge. Now, for one short term, it’s all about the finish line at the bottom of the hill. There’s no time to tap the brakes. Now is the time to hang on tight, set the face to the path and dodge every distraction flying at you as you push to the winner’s tape!
The staff of Kennedy started our ‘championship quarter’ with a full day conference, joining with staff from other schools. This was our ‘half-time, locker-room chat’, except the message we received around the theme of ‘formation’ is not just relevant to our gameplan but is also useful for your own.
One powerful feature that influences the formation of everyone’s personal identity and values is knowing they are part of a larger story. With 1200 school staff sitting together, we spent 45 mins looking at the sweeping narrative of the Bible story. It wasn’t a history lesson but an explanation on how we, too, are part of this narrative. All of our daily efforts, struggles and stress are transformed by this knowledge – by the gameplan that God’s put together from the very beginning.
As we head into the second half of the year, remember that you too can join in this same adventure. I look forward to doing life with you all.
Peter Chase
College Chaplain • Pastoral Care
