FEATURE | LUMEN
7
When De La Salle began his journey he had only wanted to help the ' masters ', or teachers , of his time be better equipped to acquit their tasks with " piety and devotedness ". He hadn ' t expected that his enterprise would see him eventually living with them and giving up all he was to become who he could be . By his own admission , he would never have embarked upon that road if he had known where it would lead him . According to him , God - in His wisdom and serenity , nudged him in imperceptible ways over a long period of time such that each commitment he made led to the next , that he would not be able to foresee its end in the initial undertaking . To what extent have we - my friends and colleagues today - all been gently led upon the path we are on today , unwary then of where it took us ? I am certain SJI
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observes her successes from a distance with a modicum of satisfaction .
Amidst the maelstrom of changes around SJI , She is constant , immovable and unchangeable . And she shouldn ' t . She can ' t . I understand that more today and perhaps holding onto a small piece of SJI ’ sI history keeps a part of Her alive in me - through me as a teacher in SJI today . At 30 years , SJI at Malcolm Road is a little worse for wear , because the changing world has taken its toll . But She will go on because she must . She is an uncompromising beacon of Hope that reminds us that in Her 166 years of wisdom , SJI continues to
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I never left SJI . But the truth is : She never left me .
bring out the best in us : that we are also the best of Her .
For the next 30 years , we will continue to do
what ' s right and not simply do things right . And we will keep her Promise : that She wants what ' s best for us all . I never left SJI . But the truth is : She never left me .