It is a crisp, fall, New England day. There are first day of school butterflies in my stomach. I sit up in bed, and see the chapel out my third story window. In just a couple of hours, Opening Convocation will take place there. I love this tradition. I take pride in being a part of this tradition.
Students file into the chapel with beautiful stained glass windows. Above the pulpit reads, Worship The Lord In The Beauty Of Holiness. Emma Willard is not affiliated with any religion, but nonetheless this statement is etched front and center in our chapel. I enjoy reading it and after I do, I take in a long, deep breath. I feel calm in this chapel.
I line up with my faculty colleagues in order of the length of time we have been at Emma. As it is now my fourth year, I am moving up, up, up in line. I love this. The line is led by Marilyn Hunter, my Italian teacher, and "the lady in the red hat." The faculty member who has been at Emma the longest has the honor of marching first, and wearing the red hat. And may I just say, Signora does rock this hat.
The organ plays and we march in and take our seats at the front of the chapel. By next year, I will be in row 2. Hollaaaaa... ;-) And when I get my Masters, you will really see my peacock feathers poofed, because with every degree one earns, you get an even more beautiful robe. We all know this would be reason enough for me to get busy on the Masters.
Once we are seated, our esteemed Head of School, will stand at the pulpit and deliver a knock out speech to inspire us all to work toward a year of excellence. Trudy's speeches always kill. The woman is such an example to me in her ability to bring down the house with her words. I will now recount the parts of Trudy's speech that most stood out to me, so that you too may take it in for consideration:
Set meaningful goals. Brassy, risky, nervy, adventurous, daring, courageous goals. What you can imagine is far more important that what you know. The secret to a successful commitment is to be able to see clearly the outcome in your mind, to visualize what it will look like when you have achieved the goal. See yourself winning the award, writing the book, being interviewed by the press--whatever it takes to get you jazzed.
Have the courage of your convictions. There is no such thing as a half-hearted commitment. Firmly announce your plans. When it comes to commitment--you are either in or you are out. Just do what you can, with what you have, where you are.
Take initiative. You need a plan, one with tiny baby steps to get you started. You need gumption--some spunk and guts.
Keep going. Bethany Hamilton, the American surfing prodigy who lost her leg in a vicious shark attack in 2003, reminds us: "Courage, sacrifice, determination, commitment, toughness, heart, talent, guts. That's what little girls are made of; the heck with sugar and spice."
Trudy concludes with the following: Frustration is an inevitable part of every worthy enterprise. You will have your share of setbacks. Just apply what you have learned to make each effort a better, more informed one. The real test is not whether you avoid this failure, because you won't. It is whether you let it harden or shame you into inaction, or whether you learn from it; whether you choose to persevere.
That said, let me now firmly announce my plans to you. I am going to research, select, apply to, and be accepted into a Masters program this year. I am going to read, write, and devote myself to the written word this year-- in English and Italian. And-- I am going to look closely at different areas of my life (physical, spiritual, emotional, financial, etc.) and make this my best year yet of reaching my goals in each area. Operation A-game is on.
Who is going to join me? Firmly announce your plans--I want to hear them.
Love.. from New York.
Once we are seated, our esteemed Head of School, will stand at the pulpit and deliver a knock out speech to inspire us all to work toward a year of excellence. Trudy's speeches always kill. The woman is such an example to me in her ability to bring down the house with her words. I will now recount the parts of Trudy's speech that most stood out to me, so that you too may take it in for consideration:
Set meaningful goals. Brassy, risky, nervy, adventurous, daring, courageous goals. What you can imagine is far more important that what you know. The secret to a successful commitment is to be able to see clearly the outcome in your mind, to visualize what it will look like when you have achieved the goal. See yourself winning the award, writing the book, being interviewed by the press--whatever it takes to get you jazzed.
Have the courage of your convictions. There is no such thing as a half-hearted commitment. Firmly announce your plans. When it comes to commitment--you are either in or you are out. Just do what you can, with what you have, where you are.
Take initiative. You need a plan, one with tiny baby steps to get you started. You need gumption--some spunk and guts.
Keep going. Bethany Hamilton, the American surfing prodigy who lost her leg in a vicious shark attack in 2003, reminds us: "Courage, sacrifice, determination, commitment, toughness, heart, talent, guts. That's what little girls are made of; the heck with sugar and spice."
Trudy concludes with the following: Frustration is an inevitable part of every worthy enterprise. You will have your share of setbacks. Just apply what you have learned to make each effort a better, more informed one. The real test is not whether you avoid this failure, because you won't. It is whether you let it harden or shame you into inaction, or whether you learn from it; whether you choose to persevere.
That said, let me now firmly announce my plans to you. I am going to research, select, apply to, and be accepted into a Masters program this year. I am going to read, write, and devote myself to the written word this year-- in English and Italian. And-- I am going to look closely at different areas of my life (physical, spiritual, emotional, financial, etc.) and make this my best year yet of reaching my goals in each area. Operation A-game is on.
Who is going to join me? Firmly announce your plans--I want to hear them.
Love.. from New York.
Ok, I'm in. I'm going to train for the Utica, NY boilermaker race (half marathon); I'm going to reconnect with friends from college and career that I've lost touch with over the last 20 yrs by reinstituting my annual letter; AND I'm going apply for a week-long fellowship that I'm interested in. Lets hold each other accountable. Thanks for the inspiration, Stacey D.
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