Great Scot April 2019 Great Scot_156_April_2019_Online | Page 34

News
YEAR 9
RETREAT –
CHOICE,
VISION, ACTION
Stephen Covey, in his globally renowned
book The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People,
describes seven sequential steps that he
believes we should all take if we want to
become more effective in whatever space we
find ourselves in. Number one is to be proactive
– know that you have the capacity to choose
your life; and number two is begin with the end
in mind – have a vision for your life and who it is
you want to be.
St Paul said in his letter to the Corinthians:
‘When I was a child, I talked like a child, I
thought like a child, I reasoned like a child. When
I became a man, I put the ways of childhood
behind me’. (1 Corinthians 13:11). Here he makes
a statement of intentionality. Maturity doesn’t
come by accident or simply waiting around. It
requires a choice, a vision, and action!
The 2019 Year 9 Retreat is over, but it is
these essential ideas that we are encouraging
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Great Scot Number 156 – April 2019
our boys to embrace as they begin the
last phase of their journey through Senior
School, and the next phase in their journey
to adulthood. Boys are taken out of their
classroom environment and placed into the
bush at Healesville, where we try to block out
the busyness and distraction of everyday life so
that we can take a moment to consider who we
are, who we want to be, and even who we can
be if we dare.
Over a short two days, boys undertook a
range of activities designed to help them learn
about themselves – their inherent value and
endless potential – and their peers. Two fantastic
young men – Old Boys of the School – shared
their stories, allowing the boys to see that
they’re not alone in whatever journey they find
themselves on; Circus Oz returned to uncover
hidden talents of coordination; Josh Pearse
(‘17) took them through activities designed to
stretch their minds and patterns of speech; and
the Christian Education staff helped the boys to
value the importance of downtime and silence.
Drawing all these threads together were Brenton
and Kane from Mustard, who invited the boys
to consider three key questions: What am I like?
What am I worth? What can I do?
We know that healthy manhood does not
happen overnight, just as fitness does not occur
because we declare it on New Year’s Day. But
these moments of declaration become that first
proactive step that St Paul and Stephen Covey
talk about – we learn of ourselves that we have
the power to choose. All we then have to do is
set a vision and start to move.
Imagine what these young men will become
when they grasp these truths! Just watch...
CAMERON CUTCHIE — HEAD OF
CHRISTIAN EDUCATION