Thankfulness

I love Thanksgiving. Certainly there is good food (I haven’t missed many meals in my day) and time with family and special friends is always wonderful. I usually spend part of the break in the great outdoors which I always appreciate. But, I think it is the intentional act of being thankful and expressing gratitude that I enjoy the most. Maybe that is because at the basic physiological level expressing gratitude is important because it releases endorphins that limit pain and increase the feeling of happiness. Who doesn’t want to be happy?

In the Upper School, we have a lot to be thankful for. We have great teachers, hard-working students, state-of-the-art educational facilities, and supportive families, just to name a few of our blessings. However, it is often easy for us to look past these things and take them for granted. So at various times throughout the school year, we try to create opportunities to be intentional about showing gratitude into the student experience. 

Last week, we had all upper school students write thank you notes to someone on campus. We spent some time reviewing the purpose and intention of these notes as well as learning about how thank you notes should be constructed. I was away from campus during this activity, but I was pleased to return back to school and see a mound of notes on my desk. I am looking forward to distributing these notes to the recipients later this month.

I often share this quote with our Seniors before their senior year begins and I tend to go back to it myself many times each year. 

“Gratitude unlocks the fullness of life.  It turns what we have into enough and more.  It turns denial into acceptance, chaos into order, confusion into clarity.  It can turn a meal into a feast, a house into a home, a stranger into a friend.  Gratitude makes sense of our past, brings peace for today and creates a vision for tomorrow.” 

~ Melody Beattie

I hope each of us takes some time in November to reflect on life’s many blessings and express gratitude. I pray that you and your families enjoy this special season of Thanksgiving.

Kind regards,

Timothy A. Jones, M.Ed.

Head of Upper School