College Captain’s Report

It has been my privilege to be the Principal of De La Salle College and to be associated with this fine College. De La is a place where people create, nurture and care for each other. In a much more profound sense the spirit of De La is everywhere there is a person who has spent a little bit of their life here. On everyone’s lips in 2000 was Y2K. Now the number on everyone’s lips is 9-11. In this age of terrorism, when we know so much about all the threats out there, we basically have two choices about how to live our life. One is to be a survivor and the other is to be a thriver. Be a thriver. (Believe it and achieve it). Survivors are just barely getting by. They spend all of their days worrying about every conceivable threat. Thrivers by contrast, are people who live with uncertainty and are prepared to weigh the risks. There is no such thing as perfect security in today’s world. The best way to thrive is to do what we love. Because if we do what we love, we’ll always love what we do. We come from the most programmed generation in our history. Since kindergarten we have been advised about, pre-school, primary school, college, university, degree and careers. The skill we actually need most, is to like people. Because if we like people, and communicate that in the way we deal with them, they will always open up to us, sometimes in the most remarkable ways. Liking people is an act of optimism - it means always believing in the other person’s better angels. Optimism is more important since 9-11, now we know there are no walls high enough or thick enough to protect an open society. Which is why, for me at least, hope is not just an attitude. It is a thriver strategy.

College Headmaster’s Report

To the Student Community, there are three things I wish to say: 1. Respect yourself, you are worthy of it. You have the right to be yourself. 2. Respect others, even if you do not like some of them. They have a right to be themselves. 3. Love God. You have said at times you are confused about God, but you can accept that there is a strength greater than ours. Go on and doubt – we all doubt – but don’t close your mind. Keep on questioning : this helps us grow. You have to seek and find the answers. Don’t plant yourself so firmly in the centre of the picture that there is no room for others, no room to be of service and do your duty, no room to listen to the whisperings of the conscience and no room to develop that awareness which goes beyond conscience and can reveal to us something of the truth. Our role in life is to make a difference – make a difference. Care for others. Believe in yourself. But don’t be over confident. Be satisfied. But know that you can always improve. Accept love graciously. Always be ready to give more. Be modest in victory and success and courageous in defeat. Give comfort and security to others and you will always receive it in return. Be glad … just for being the wonderful person that you are. We need to be open to opportunities we aren’t anticipating. We need to be ready to follow the paths we didn’t expect. Treasure what you have, those you have, here and now: treasure yourself too, here and now. I encourage you all to trust the common place, the ordinary, the everyday. Many of us believe that life is all about highs, yet it is the ordinary, the everyday, the here and now which is of most value to us. It is what is inside of us that makes us who we are – our honesty, integrity, attitude, our faith. A De La Salle education gives every student the wherewithal to make fabulous lifelong journeys to destinations of his own choice. Each student is armed with a sound knowledge; the conviction to act when it is the right time; the skills to learn from life’s lessons; the ability to dream and an insight into the presence of God. “How far you go in life depends on your being tender with the young, compassionate with the aged, sympathetic with the starving and tolerant of the weak and strong – because some day you will have been all of these.” (Carver) In conclusion, the most important parts of your life stories are the personal parts, through your choices, you create your story. Your story will include family and friends, not just your career. And, at times, it will call on you to participate in the life of the community in which you live and to help those less fortunate. Money can vanish overnight, power disappear, even that bubble reputation can evaporate, but characters – personal integrity – is a rock that is secure and no-one can take that from you. You begin each journey with hope, optimism, expectation and enthusiasm. Remember: ‘be your own person.’ I thank all the members of the College Community, for your energy, loyalty, accomplishments, enthusiasm, resilience and compassion and I ask you to remember each day that you are in the Holy Presence of God.