News From the Hall: September 19, 2024

Look Up. Find Joy. Dream Big. 

One of the privileges of being Head of School for Saint Mary’s Hall is the opportunity to occasionally speak during Chapel. On Monday, I gave my first chapel talk of the school year, about the importance of having a vision when making decisions.  
 
I spoke with all of our students about how this past summer, I was on a section of the Appalachian Trail in Massachusetts, hiking a short half-day solo, when I came across a bridge that spanned the Massachusetts Turnpike.  It was on that highway that we traveled to see my grandmother in the summers.  We traveled that highway on the way back from my last high school basketball game when we lost in the quarterfinals of the state championship, as well as my last college basketball game when we lost in the final 16 of the national championship.  I went away to boarding school on that road, and I traveled to Maine during summer weekends when I was in college to visit the woman I would marry, Mrs. Miller. I took that road to move to Philadelphia for my first job when I decided to become a teacher.  You can perhaps imagine how startled I was when I crossed that bridge, looked at that highway, realized what it was, and felt a flood of memories come back to me.  
 
Seeing that road from a completely different perspective caused me to think about a lot of the decisions I’ve made over the course of my life.  It caused me to reflect on which decisions led to happiness, and which did not. In looking back over those life decisions, one thing I’ve come to appreciate is how important it is to have a vision for why you will make certain decisions because decisions that begin with a vision are the ones that lead to fulfillment.    
 
For students, I know there were many quizzes, tests, and homework assignments last week, and most probably worked hard to do well.  They may not have given much thought to why they work hard and strive to do well, though.  Some probably made goals like “This is the year I’m going to do better in school,” “This is the year I want to get better grades,” or “I want to attend a great college.” For a lot of students, these feel like long-term goals – but as adults, we know that a lot of life happens after graduation. So the bigger question might be, "What do you want to get out of college?  What kind of experience do you want for four years?  What do you want to learn and develop about yourself? Why?”  
 
These deeper questions take time, and the answers are not easy, but I urged our students to ask them because they are critical as they seek to know themselves.  

A tradition that our Upper School students celebrate during assembly is a minute countdown to the end of the year. What I like about countdowns is they help you realize how quickly things go and that our time here is finite.  My wish for our students is that they learn the skills to make the most of that time. Each day goes really fast. Whether they’re looking back at the end of the day when they return home, or whether it’s at the end of the year, I hope their decisions here will be guided by their own vision and the vision for our community that has already been set forth by our students earlier this year at Convocation. 

We all remember Talia’s suggestion that we spend too much time looking at our devices, and not enough paying attention to each other.  Looking up means noticing each other and learning from each other.   

We remember Evaristo reminding us to define what our personal race is and dream big to win it.  

And Max, in Form 5, reminded us through his own poetry to find joy in the simplest things.  

What an incredible vision our students have articulated for this year.  Dream Big: seek a big vision for the year…what do I want to accomplish this year? What might I want to accomplish in my life? Find Joy: Approach each moment as if it’s part of a larger vision with all kinds of possibilities. Happiness is often what you make of each small moment. And lastly, look up.  Happiness comes when we care for others as much as we care for ourselves. 

I enjoy taking notes, so I gifted our students with some small notebooks. I suggested that they create a practice of writing and reflecting on things they’ve learned, jotting down their goals for the year, and always keeping their bigger vision in mind as they make the decisions that help define their paths in life. 

Sincerely, 

Len Miller
Head of School