Blog
Happy New Year!
There is an air of palpable excitement in school as I write these words, for the new academic year is, full of promise and intrigue, poised to take off.
We have stories to share about summer holidays and adventures, we have the little moments of joy experienced when seeing new equipment, new uniform... and that feeling of turning over to a brand new page in a notebook, its surface as unsullied as a field of crisp, white, fresh snow.
It's a time of year when I always talk in assemblies and in staff meetings about new year's resolutions, and starting out with purpose as we mean to go on.
What should be the first marks in the fresh snow?
In which direction will they go?
How will you respond to the inevitable yet unexpected snowballs?
There is an advantage to newly-fallen snow, in that it lightly covers whatever has gone before it, and I believe that's a beautiful metaphor for all our regrets and mistakes - trivial and otherwise - that have brought us to today.
This year is a brand-new, pristine, snowy field and you can only look forward; your past regrets are there but discreetly hidden away so that you recall them but cannot dwell on them. The snow won't last forever, for the sun is rising, so you must be decisive...
What marks will you make on your future?
In which direction do you deliberately choose to go?
I love this time of year for its sense of anticipation, excitement and colour. Welcome to all the new members of our special Valley Park community; I hope this is the start of a long and happy relationship with us.
Most of all, I hope this new year brings success and happiness for everyone.
Happy new year!
