The Music of Christmas »»
Posted on Dec 16, 2009
The music of the Christmas season is a mixture of carols, songs, hymns and classical instrumentals. As a whole, the music uniquely identifies this season, making it instantaneously recognizable. Many of the carols are associated with fascinating stories, which to me make the songs even more captivating. This is the case for one carol whose background links 19th century France, friends from different religious traditions, Civil War America, the trenches of the Franco-Prussian War and the foundations of modern radio!
The French carol “Cantique de Noel” was written as a poem by commissionaire of wines Placide Cappeau de Roquemaure at the request of his parish priest. The author completed the poem during a coach ride to Paris in December 1847. When he had finished the writing, he turned to his Jewish friend, Adolphe Charles Adams, to set the words to music. The beautiful song was sung for Christmas, less than three weeks later. Banned by the organized French church because it lacked “musical taste,” the song grew in popularity, was translated into English and then became a favorite in the northern states during the American Civil War. This oceanic leap seems to have largely been the result of significant “editorial stretching” by John Sullivan Dwight who translated Placide Cappeau’s French to read, “Truly he taught us to love one another; his law is love and his gospel is peace. Chains shall he break, for the slave is our brother.” Those sentiments resonated with anti-slavery supporters. A legend, which may have been born more from the carol’s the theme of peace and love than of reality, holds that during the Franco-Prussian War all fighting ceased for twenty-four hours after a French soldier entered “no man’s land” and sang the opening line of the carol, only to be joined by an opposing soldier who completed the verse in German. Finally, Dr. Reginald Fessenden, once an electrical engineer and chief chemist for Thomas A. Edison, powered up his revolutionary invention, the alternator-single frequency transmitter, on Christmas Eve 1906. The inventor used the occasion for a radio broadcast of the Christmas story in his own voice, which he concluded by playing “Cantique de Noel” on his violin.
In English, we call this carol “O Holy Night” and it is now a favorite around the world. Christmas music is a celebration of the miraculous things God does; however, the stories behind our seasonal music are laced with the important reminder that ordinary people accomplish remarkable things. You might say there is a message “between the lines.” In the coming days, may your time with family and friends both old and new, be fulfilling, invigorating and spiritually refreshing.
Big Things in Small Packages »»
Posted on Dec 09, 2009
Now that we are fully engulfed in the frenzy of the holiday season you may be hinting in your letters to Santa that “big things come in small packages.” Usually that ditty is a thinly veiled reference to receiving expensive jewelry or other small but high-priced treasure. Imagine this saying from the perspective of value and not of expense.
Alfred Carlton Gilbert knew a few things about packages and the marketing of his creations to his favorite audience - children! When you engage children in even a short discussion about the gifts they long for this holiday season, toys quickly become “Exhibit A.” In the early 20th Century A.C. Gilbert had his finger on the pulse of American boys. As a magician, inventor, Olympic pole vault specialist and the holder of a doctorate from Yale, A.C. Gilbert was first and foremost a boy. Through his leadership the Gilbert Company manufactured many high quality toys including, chemistry sets, magic sets and trains. However, his reputation was built upon just one toy. In a sturdy, simple, painted box he packaged what he simply called the Erector Set. “Hey Boys, Make Lots of Toys!” was right on the box. I remember opening one of those captivating boxes to discover all the girders, nuts, bolts, guy wires, pulleys and motors necessary for endless fun. The toy was new with each project.
Think of the punch packed in some other small “boxes.” Abraham Lincoln’s Gettysburg Address lasted just two minutes. Or consider the lightning bolt. Generally such electrical discharges arc from ground to cloud and measure a mere one inch in diameter. Yet, these displays heat the air to nearly 18,000 degrees Fahrenheit in a matter of milliseconds. The resulting thunder rattles on and on. Big things come in small packages indeed.
So what will you pack in your small boxes this Christmas? At Grandparent Day one of our visitors explained their idea for “small box – great value.” They invite each grandchild to “Camp Grandma & Grandpa.” As a gift, each grandchild finds an invitation and travel arrangements to the grandparent’s home for two weeks in the summer. This ensures that the grandchildren know their grandparents more personally and associate them with something other than a transitory gift. It also emphasizes deferred gratification. In addition, the grandchildren know their cousins and the parents involved receive the gift of a two week “summer vacation.” Small box – great value.
As you search to maintain the perspective in your own holiday traditions I hope you will share your big ideas for small packages. What is YOUR Erector Set? May you find a gift that is forever new, is packed with future potential and gee, maybe is educational too!
Family Stories »»
Posted on Dec 02, 2009
One of the real joys of Grandparents’ Day is the wisdom shared by these special adults with the important young people in their lives. In the days leading up to our break for Thanksgiving our third graders had a visit from Ben Franklin and we also celebrated a Veteran’s Day Chapel. These celebrations encourage us to share the stories of our family units and the history of our nation. In our own family, many years ago now, my grandfather (a World War I veteran) used the opportunity to share the symbolism represented on the back of a simple one-dollar bill.
On the green back of the one-dollar bill you will find two circles that comprise the Great Seal of the United States. We can thank three committees, one of which was headed by Benjamin Franklin for this artwork. Several of the symbols in the left portion of the seal are less well understood. If you think of the left circle in a north-south orientation you’ll recognize that the western surface of the unfinished pyramid is dark. This is a representation at the time of our own western territories being undiscovered. As a nation we too were unfinished and not yet a clear force in Western Civilization. The eye on the pyramid is a reference to divinity. This symbol and the words, “In God We Trust” and “Annuit Coeptis” (God has favored our undertaking) express the belief that God was instrumental in our national development.
In the right-hand portion of the Great Seal is the familiar bald eagle. This symbol is often used to mark locations of national significance. The bald eagle is truly bald in the symbol to clearly indicate that we are a nation of leaders who wear no crowns. The shield in front of the eagle floats free indicating that we are prepared to stand on our own. The white bar at the shield’s top edge symbolizes the fact that Congress unifies the nation. Of course the famous “E Pluribus Unum” means one nation from many people. You may not realize that while the olive branch and arrows are clear references to peace and might, the eagle’s head is reversed to face the talon holding the arrows if and when Congress declares war.
Now, I give all of our numerologists a discovery assignment that may require magnification. Find as many instances utilizing the number 13 on the $1 bill. For example, in the chevron of the Treasury Shield there are 13 stars. Think of how often thirteen has been featured in our national history; we had 13 original colonies and 13 signers of the Declaration of Independence. Our national symbolism is filled with meaning. My message at Grandparents Day was, “Be There.” It is my hope that as the generations gather during this extended holiday season, you will recall your family stories and the stories which relate your family history to our national stories.
Thanksgiving »»
Posted on Nov 18, 2009
Our natural inclination as parents is to protect our children from all adversity and pain. This is an inclination born, at least in part, by an increasing ability to accomplish it. Those with access to basic medical care now give birth with few complications and thereafter sidestep the majority of historical childhood diseases. Thankfully, modern medicine has changed many of the life-threatening illnesses of youth into merely childhood inconveniences. However, history also records that many significant inventions, medical discoveries and works of art, music and literature, were incubated during periods of illness, adversity and pain.
As we approach our celebration of Thanksgiving, we should remember that the day owes its very existence to the periods of hardship that gave it relevance. The repeating pattern of adversity, disease, crop failure, pain and, of course, of death itself provided the bookends that drove our ancestors to their knees to give thanks. Remember, too, that these characteristics of life were not new to humanity just because settlers had crossed the Atlantic. Thanksgiving is as old as man himself.
Johann Wolfgang von Goethe apparently led a charmed childhood in the Germany of the middle 1700s. Though he was interested in a wide variety of disciplines, it was after his uninspired completion of a law degree that his life changed. Failed relationships, internal hemorrhaging and the need for an extensive medical convalescence spurred his foray into the literary arts. His most famous dramatic work, Faust, was penned after his self-imposed exile to Italy to avoid controversies in the Weimar court. Amid such tension, Goethe’s reputation and wisdom grew. In her book, The Art of Abundance, author Candy Paul reminds her readers of Goethe’s nine requirements for contentment:
Health enough to make work a pleasure; wealth enough to support your needs; strength enough to battle with difficulties and overcome them; grace enough to confess your sins and forsake them; patience enough to toil until some good is accomplished; charity enough to see some good in your neighbor; love enough to move you to be useful and helpful to others; faith enough to make real things of God; and hope enough to remove all anxious fears concerning the future.
Happy Thanksgiving!
Sports »»
Posted on Nov 11, 2009
AT RPDS we do not have interscholastic sports teams; however, our commitment to physical fitness, sports and outdoor activity could not be stronger. These coordinated activities build teamwork, camaraderie and life skills. Years ago I saved a news clipping that reported that the Walkerville High School Girls Basketball team beat the Hart Lakeshore Public Academy girls by a whopping 115 to 2! The news reporter felt it was important to relate that, “it could have been worse.” Oh, really! When we judge the impact of a game using only superficial criteria like wins and losses, score differentials and MVP’s we miss the rationale for the inclusion of athletics within a school co-curricular program. Frankly, the commercialization of sports (and that is not merely a phenomenon afflicting professional levels) has clouded their real value. It is vital that the adults in such situations insist upon perspective surrounding children’s athletic contests.
Early in my career I coached extensively and will always fondly recall a particular high school varsity soccer team that never won a single game in the two years I worked with them. I know, you’re thinking, “some coach!” Well maybe, but these were a mixed group of both boys and girls, most of whom had never played high school soccer. We played in a boy’s league with state championship squads and schools able to separate their boys’ and girls’ programs. We could not. There were close games, overtime games and occasional losses that never were in question. We probably still hold the record somewhere for one goal losses. Yet never has a team given more, played more enthusiastically, practiced harder or believed in themselves more fervently. In the end they were proud of their accomplishments and they learned that the experience was about much more than winning.
A hallmark of physical education programs in independent schools has been the values that individual and team sports promote. Students learn to participate, to persevere and to depend upon teammates. They bond as fellow participants and they learn that groups accomplish more together (even in losing) than they ever could as individuals. It may not be immediately obvious that participation also teaches students that there is a way to LOSE as well as a way to WIN. Unfortunately, the team from Walkerville apparently missed that learning opportunity. Imagine your son or daughter on the team from Lakeshore, how would you help them to positively reflect on what their experiences mean long term? Enjoy the game!
Finished Products »»
Posted on Nov 04, 2009
A nagging concern for me is the prevalent cultural attitude that young people are expected to be “finished products” very young in life. The truth is that maturation is a very long process. The child we see today is more like a rolling hula-hoop than an arrow in flight. Some days children are up, but most days they are either on their way up … or down. As parents, teachers and coaches we need to remember that on any given day, regardless of a child’s age, we are not seeing our young people fully developed. Although we continually and correctly call them to high expectations in every way, we need to save our final judgments for another day.
A young boy was given by his mother to be raised by his grandparents. In this particular case that was not a healthy idea; the boy began a childhood of disagreement and anger. Soon he was failing classes in school. As you would guess, he was withdrawn from school to return to the family farm; however, he soon proved to be a lackluster farmer and unsuccessful there too. He returned to school and eventually earned entrance into Trinity College, Cambridge. University life provided the opportunity to explore new interests, but these rarely agreed with his classroom assignments. Renowned mathematics Professor Isaac Barrow could clearly tell that the young man was unmoved by Euclidian geometry but could not tell that he was privately mastering the works of René Descartes, Pierre Gassendi and Thomas Hobbes on his own time. Graduation (without honors) was followed by more private study and shortly after his return to Cambridge in 1667 he was appointed to replace his math professor as the distinguished Lucasian Professor of Mathematics. The world was beginning to discover Isaac Newton! Newton produced his book De Motu in 1684. Then nearly two years later, the Philosophiae Naturalis Principia Mathematica appeared. It is difficult to cite a more influential work published in the history of science. Although Isaac Newton made pivotal contributions to mathematics, optics, astronomy and, of course, to physics, to imply that he was an immediate success is a gross simplification. Many prominent and influential men in math/science circles were slow to relinquish their control of the intellectual societies. They were even slower to admit Sir Isaac Newton’s genius.
If we had judged Isaac Newton in 1653, 1663 or even in 1683 our judgments would have been embarrassingly wrong! Each child and frankly, each of us is a “work in progress.” Help to celebrate that progress in others and give yourself permission to recognize it within your own life.
No Advice »»
Posted on Oct 28, 2009
There is no shortage of advice and plenty of “no” advice. An excerpt of Michael Meyer’s book, The Year That Changed the World, appears in the November 2009 issue of Reader’s Digest and recounts the opposition President Ronald Reagan faced in June 1987. Mr. Reagan’s instincts, piqued through dealings with Mikhail Gorbachev and living through glasnost and perestroika, told him that including speechwriter Peter Robinson’s line, “…Mr. Gorbachev, tear down this wall!” in his Berlin speech was the right thing to do. The State Department, the National Security Council and the ranking American diplomat in Berlin all advised “no.”
The “no” roadblock comes in many forms. Leo Tolstoy, author of War and Peace flunked out of college. Walt Disney was fired for a lack of ideas. Einstein, Pasteur and Newton all did poorly in school and Winston Churchill failed 6th grade. Nathaniel Hawthorne was fired. Abraham Lincoln heard “no” from voters when he first ran for Illinois state representative, he heard “no” from colleagues when he ran for Speaker of the Illinois House of Representatives and he heard “no” again when he ran for U.S. Senate. When have your ideas been greeted with “no?”
The diplomatic advice given to Ronald Reagan was that he should alter his famous challenge to Mr. Gorbachev and say instead, “One day, this ugly wall will disappear.” Wow, that’d light a fire. President Reagan rejected the “no” advice and his challenge became an invitation from the western world to the communist block of nations to continue the historic progress already begun. Clearly, there are times when the most prudent advice is in fact, “no.” A mark of effective leadership is knowing when and how to galvanize through the sharing of new ideas. True leaders have an infectious ability to make others believe and achieve in ways they would not otherwise succeed. In Walt Disney’s words, “Somehow I can’t believe that there are any heights that can’t be scaled by a man who knows the secrets of making dreams come true. This special secret, it seems to me, can be summarized in four C s. They are curiosity, confidence, courage, and constancy, and the greatest of all is confidence. When you believe in a thing, believe in it all the way, implicitly and unquestionable.”
The new statue of President Ronald Reagan was unveiled in the United States Capitol rotunda earlier this month. Rimming the upper edge of that new statue’s pedestal are chips from the demolished Berlin Wall that symbolized the Cold War period of international relations! Remember those Berlin chips when you hear “no” advice.
Communicators »»
Posted on Oct 21, 2009
Each generation has its own obstacles to overcome and the wonderful inventions seen throughout history are evidence that humans are adept at meeting such obstacles. However, we sometimes overlook the challenging reality that new solutions need to be effectively communicated to the rest of us mired in the past. Notorious failures in this regard are product instructional and assembly manuals. Great products have become obsolete because ineffective communication fails to sell the concept. Just ask Sony about Beta format video systems! For progress to occur, the ability to communicate with others is essential.
United States Peace Corp volunteers working in less advanced agricultural cultures apparently used to discover contemporary farm equipment, sent expectantly to increase farming productivity, either rusting in the fields or being dragged behind oxen. Technological examples of such frustrations are common too. An exasperated caller to the Dell Tech Solutions desk complained that she couldn’t get her computer to even turn on. After ensuring that the computer was plugged in, the technician asked her what happened when she pushed the power button. Her response, “I’ve pushed and pushed on this foot pedal and nothing happens.” The “foot pedal,” of course, turned out to be the mouse.
A superior education provides the tools of learning and communication, which allow an exploration and explanation of our world. Such an education instills wonder while it challenges students to think in creative and innovative ways. Educators in such a model spend little time telling students WHAT to think and a great deal of time teaching students the processes of HOW to think. Students educated in such a way are armed with high self-esteem and the confidence to approach our ever-changing world; they are equipped to teach themselves apart from the four walls of a classroom. Among those students must be communicators able to bridge the generations and to share the value of advances in ways that will capture the minds of others.
All the progressive innovations in the world are not progress until someone has the ability to explain them to others!
Temptations »»
Posted on Oct 14, 2009
Temptations come in many “flavors” and it is hardly news that we all face them in our lives. The reasoning, character, will power and decision-making skills that we must apply when meeting our temptations are learned. At RPDS, this instruction is not part of a “hidden curriculum.” Instead we spend considerable time both in our guidance-directed Heart Smart activities, and as individual teachers simply dealing with daily issues, openly guiding the character formation of our students. Even though we occasionally hear that we take this issue too seriously, or hear reports of graduates who clearly “know better” testing the boundaries of their new environments, we persist in character education. The reason is that we feel strongly that a few hours of effort now remains the best way to help students avoid the pain of poor choices in the future.
Motivational speaker Zig Zigler tells a story about Emanuel Nenger whose short-term choices in 1887 clearly caused long-term consequences. Mr. Nenger was a respected, middle-aged gentleman when he entered a grocery store and paid for some turnip greens with a $20 bill. The cashier knew something was amiss when some of the ink from the note rubbed off on her wet hands. Counterfeiting was not consistent with Emanuel’s reputation. He was a successful artist. However, when the police checked Mr. Nenger’s home they discovered the worst. In the artist’s attic they found the easel, paint brushes, and paints that Emanuel used to meticulously paint the counterfeit money. In a truly odd turn of events, three portraits that Mr. Nenger had painted, were also found. Each portrait required about the same time to complete as his work on one $20 bill. Those three paintings later sold at public auction for a little over $16,000!
What is it that causes a successful artist with the skill to sell his work for thousands of dollars to risk his reputation by painting counterfeit money rather than portraits? Why do some cheat themselves by copying test papers, assignments or essays of other students? When temptations come, as they surely will, it is our hope that RPDS character lessons learned years earlier will rule the day. It may seem to be an uphill, counter-cultural battle, but we still believe that character counts.
Two Monks »»
Posted on Oct 07, 2009
In his collection of stories, The Song of the Bird, Father Anthony deMello re-tells this story:
“The Monk and the Woman”
Two Buddhist monks, on their way to the monastery, found an exceedingly beautiful woman at the riverbank. Like them, she wished to cross the river, but the water was too high. So one of the monks lifted her onto his back and carried her across.
His fellow monk was thoroughly scandalized. For two hours, he berated him on his negligence in keeping the rule: Had he forgotten that he was a monk? How did he dare touch a woman? And worse, carry her across the river? What would people say? Had he not brought their holy religion into disrepute? And so on.
The offending monk patiently listened to the never-ending sermon. Finally he broke in with, “Brother, I dropped that woman at the river. Are you still carrying her?”
A feature of high quality literature is that within it we find multiple readings; this story is no exception. We can wonder, questioningly, if the story would differ had the woman not been exceedingly beautiful. We can debate religiosity that falls short of service. Are there hidden reasons for the second monk’s judgmental attack? However, we will ultimately have to wrestle with the all-so-human behavior shown by the second monk when he just can’t “let it go.”
Parables catch our attention and speak to us because through them we easily relate to their imputed wisdom. In what ways and situations am I the second monk? While just as surely as there are no monks offering piggyback rides, nor rivers to cross as we traverse the RPDS campus, in the course of any school year this story is recast. Our lives away from campus offer similar challenges. The potentially healing advice of those last two sentences is hauntingly powerful; Christians call it Grace. Letting go is a vital virtue to learn.
