Thought for the day
Stories we tell on the journey
Growing ...
‘You have to do your own growing no matter how
tall your grandfather was.’
Abraham Lincoln President of the USA 19th century
Warmth and rain and days with long hours of ...sunshine?
Necessary ingredients for the growing of plants, grasses, flowers
trees. This week we are looking at the stories of our growing – of
our growing up – and of the necessary ingredients to grow a
human being!
The Parable of the Sower
When a large crowd was gathering and people were coming to
Jesus from town after town, he told this parable: “A farmer went
out to sow his seed. As he was scattering the seed, some fell
along the path; it was trampled on, and the birds ate it up. Some
fell on rock, and when it came up, the plants withered because
they had no moisture. Other seed fell among thorns, which grew
up with it and choked the plants. Still other seed fell on good soil.
It came up and yielded a crop, a hundred times more than was
sown.”
This is a well known story from Luke’s Gospel, Chapter 8. It says
some obvious things about growing – but what are they? What
conditions does the seed need to grow well, and what conditions
make it grow badly?
What are the ideal conditions for growing a good human being!!?
What conditions will make it far less easy?
*
Jesus then explains what the story of the sower means:
‘This is the meaning of the parable: The seed is the word of God.
Those along the path are the ones who hear, and then evil
comes and takes away the word from their hearts, so that they
do not believe and be saved. Those on the rock are the ones who
receive the word with joy when they hear it, but they have no
root. They believe for a while, but in the time of testing they fall
away. The seed that fell among thorns stands for those who hear,
but as they go on their way they are choked by life’s worries,
riches and pleasures, and they do not mature. But the seed on
good soil stands for those with a noble and good heart, who hear
the word, retain it, and by persevering produce a crop.
25th – 29th June 2012
‘Dignity is as essential to Human Life as water, food,
and oxygen.’
Laura Hillenbrand, author
Students may wish to consider what the word ‘dignity’ means
in that sentence and why it is so important. Then they may
wish to replace ‘dignity’ with another word of their own and
explain why that matters so much.
*
Stories of our own growing ...
As a school, we have reached that point in the year when the
years change – Years 11 and 13 have (by Wednesday)
finished their last exams ... the Leavers’ Ball is on Thursday
for Year 13, and the Prom is on Friday for Year 11. There it is
– things are very different.
The year has also, imperceptibly at first, reached that point of
change: the day with the most hours or daylight has passed
for us in the northern hemisphere, and slowly the hours of
daylight each day will reduce, a couple of minutes at a time ...
Change and moving on – growing and maturing ... what
changes in school? What changes in us? What have been this
year the important moments of our own growing that have
made us different and we hope better?
*
Fatty acids and amino acids and minerals and vitamins and water
and iron and bacteria and sunlight and salt and love and hope and
other people and soil and trees – not one life without many things;
not one life without other lives ...
Reflect on what these words mean for each individual.
(Whatever others have done before us, whatever is in our
genes, or our past, it comes down to us and what we turn
ourselves into...)
*
As well as individual responsibility, our background and how
we are brought up affects what we grow up to be:
‘Dancing was always part of my culture growing up in
Barbados. When I shot my first video I worked really hard
with my choreographer to perfect the routines.’
Rihanna
We notice the two things: the influence from the
background, and all the help, inspiration etc that would bring
– and then the individual putting in the work to ensure that
that becomes an actual success for her.
*
10,000 HOURS
That is a current idea: the difference between success and
non-success, genius and mediocrity - anyone from the
Beatles to Bill Gates, who has succeeded, has done so on the
back of at least 10,000 hours of practice. It is that which
grows talent, intelligence, natural abilities into achievement.
A musician, a sportsperson, en engineer, a scientist whose
research leads to an astonishing discovery ... what we see is a
product of what we do not. Growth comes from the regular
and quiet and determined hours of training rehearsal and
practice, the overcoming of things that were difficult ... the
more drive to put in the hours backstage, the more we will
achieve...
*
‘The harder I work, the luckier I get.’
Samuel Goldwyn, Film Producer