Shakespeare would have adored Dexter, our golden retriever, for his inspirational existence.
To be in or not to be in…that is the question. Hark…is that doth Dexter at the door who beckons to come in? Come hither young golden for it is your passion to know not whether you need to be out or in. What are these goals that you chase after? Alas, we have no means other than to be present to bring you hence forth into the home. Walk through thy glistening white tiled kitchen floor. See what prints thou bear into my very soul. And I shall see such black and grained marks … they have their tracks. Nay but to live and glow in your precious being. Good night sweet Prince…I shall wash you tomorrow.
Dexter brings the Shakespeare out in all of us who know him.

What an amazing 2 weeks it has been. We went from having National anxiety to feeling completely proud of being Canadian. Half way through the Olympics we were tied with Korea. They don’t even have snow. How does that work? It would be like us going to Seoul and taking them to the matt in Taekwondo. It shouldn’t happen. But now we can reflect on the spirit of Canada and know that it was that amazing energy on the streets, in the stands and in the rain on the side of the ski hills that propelled those amazing athletes to meet with success. I rarely watch hockey but I was no more than 6 inches from the screen all week taking it all in. At 2-2 with 24 seconds on the clock I thought I might have a stroke but it made the ending all that more fun. Way to go Canada!

I spoke to a fabulous group of Principals this week. They were dedicated professionals who truly felt inspired about their work. Some worked in economically depressed areas of town so were faced with unique challenges. One story relayed to me following my presentation was very moving. A principal was called down to a grade 8 classroom due to a disruption. A young black student was ranting and swearing at the teacher. When he saw the Principal at the doorway he hurdled from a standing position over the desk in front of him, cleared the desk entirely and bolted from the classroom. The following day the Principal saw the student in the hallway and asked him to have “a little chat” in her office. He reluctantly agreed. The first words the principal said to him, “have you ever thought of track?” The student was stunned. “Aren’t you going to yell at me?” he asked. She replied, “we’ll get to that later.” “No, I haven’t thought of track…I don’t think of much these days…, but it’s not like I have a full schedule so I guess I could try it out.”
The principal connected the student with a coach across the city who specialized in training in track. It involved travelling across town each day on the bus. He did just that … every day. This young man graduated with a full scholarship for track and field to one of the top universities in the states. After he graduated from that university he went on to become a very successful stock broker. He moved his entire family down to where he lives in the states and every Christmas sends a beautiful bouquet of flowers to the home of the Principal. She changed the course of his life. He was on track to a dead end life. She saw his potential, connected him to the people who could nurture that talent and he took a completely differenct direction with his life. That same principal has moved twice since and yet the flowers always find her. That young student who became a successful young man would never forget the impact she had on his life. You can never underestimate the lives that you touch when you nurture potential.
Posted by Meg Soper at 8:56 AM 0 comments