Christian Brothers College Newsletter
Senior Campus 214 Wakefield Street, Adelaide SA 5000 P 08 8400 4200 F 08 8400 4299 Junior Campus 324 Wakefield Street, Adelaide SA 5000 P 08 8400 4222 F 08 8400 4220 CBC Community 178 East Terrace, Children’s Centre Adelaide SA 5000 P 08 8223 5469 F 08 8223 7803
A Birth-12 Catholic College for boys in the Edmund Rice Tradition
Email enquiries@cbc.sa.edu.au Website www.cbc.sa.edu.au
Purple Patches INSIGHT UPDATE EDITION
Term 2, Week 2
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Friday 9 May, 2014
Br Michael’s Corner We Need To Work At Making Family Life Happy
Brian Wilson remembering the spirit of ANZAC.
The word ANZAC has become a part of Australian thought, language, and identity. It has come to mean many things to many people. However, for my late grandfather, Herbert Brian Wilson, it described an important part of his life. I have been asked to reflect on his war time experiences, and the qualities he stood for; the characteristics of ANZAC. Grandpa spoke very rarely of his time in the army and so, in reality, I know very little of what he truly went through and felt. But I do know that he felt the pain of losing friends and I can still recall the sadness in his eyes as he told the story of a friend with whom he served throughout the whole war that was tragically killed on patrol, not knowing the war had already ended. I have often read of the New Guinea campaign and the dreadful ordeals and horrors that Australian soldiers, like my grandfather, suffered. But in contrast to this I have grown up with the concept of the ANZAC spirit. Often associated with this is an enduring mateship, boldness, and humour even in the most tragic of circumstances. My grandfather was no exception to this on the few occasions he spoke of his service. It was with fondness that he reflected on the times with his friends. As a troop sergeant in heavy anti-aircraft I recall how proud he was in shooting down more planes than the neighbouring battery from Victoria. My grandfather served five years in the Army, and one may think that such a small portion of a man’s life is easily forgotten, but in the words of his favourite author John Steinbeck “people do not forget”. He never forgot the jungles of New Guinea or the friendships forged, but rather he carried it with him throughout his whole life. He used his experiences to help my father and brother through their own war service and like many Australian servicemen he drew a curtain on the horrors through which he had lived to raise a family and to make a difference in a country he loved dearly. In the course of his life, both at home and in the jungles of New Guinea my grandfather dedicated himself to qualities displayed in hardship by Australian servicemen and women of past and present generations, values that have come to reflect us as a nation and I think it is in the writings of war correspondent Charles Bean that these ideals of ANZAC are described in their entirety:
Families that are growing towards greater happiness and satisfaction often express their approval and liking for each other. Husbands or wives need to praise each other in front of the children. As part of regular bedtime talks, family games or rituals, saying something we like about each other is most helpful. Planning enjoyable times for the family, are essential eg. making the family meal a special time for talking and sharing or planning for each parent to spend some one-to-one time with each child each week. No family is perfect. We live with machines and machines can be perfect but not human beings. We don’t have to be perfect to be a good parent or child. No one can maintain a facade of perfection with his or her own family. In the family we need to learn to be ourselves, to get on with others and to realise no one is perfect. Happy families accept differences because everyone is different. We need to help family members to appreciate their uniqueness as that makes them special. Appreciation grows with praise. Reading is one way of spending time with a child as well as expressing our love. Being a parent is one of the greatest joys and challenges in life but pain, self-doubt and anguish can be part of the journey. They just mean we are human, not that we are bad parents. Parents should take time to talk to each other about things they do well as parents. Br. Michael Flaherty
“ANZAC stood, and still stands, for reckless valour in a good cause, for enterprise, resourcefulness, fidelity, comradeship, and endurance that will never own defeat.”
Class of ’74 Reunion
It is those qualities that we pause to reflect on at events like today.
A 40 year reunion is planned for Old Scholars who began or finished with the CBC class of 1974. If you were part of the Year 8 group in 1970 and/or finished Year 12 in 1974, you might like to attend the Reunion which is planned to take place at this year’s CBC Old Scholars’ Dinner on Friday October 17. If you would like to be included in correspondence about the Reunion, please email Terry Roberts at terobbo@bigpond.com
Brian Wilson Walsh House Captain
Mr Noel Mifsud warmly invites you to attend Christian Brothers College
Open Day Liberating Education
Sunday 25 May 11am - 2pm
We open hearts and minds, through quality teaching and learning experiences, so that through critical reflection and engagement each person is hope-filled and free to build a better world for all.
Faith Excellence Community Compassion