14 PLC in Prin t | D e c e m b e r 2 0 2 1
PLC i n P ri nt | Mar ch 2 0 2 2
Camp Week, Years 7-9
Christian Ministries
Year 7
We are delighted to report back on another successful PLC camp week! During the five days it was inspiring to see our girls practising PLC leadership competencies such as resilience, self-awareness, responsibility and collaboration. Year 7 girls consolidated and formed new friendships while participating in a diverse program which involved two nights of sleeping in cabins and two nights in tents. Highlights included white water rafting on the Goulburn River, rock scrambling and climbing in the Cathedral Ranges and learning about Taungurung Indigenous culture. Year 8 girls explored the rainforest and coastal ecosystems of the iconic Wilsons Promontory National Park. Sleeping in tents each night, girls participated in group cooking, surfing lessons, canoeing, and hiking. Year 9 girls embarked on a journey to either an alpine, lake or grassland environment. Students who chose to go to the Victorian High Plains enjoyed stunning views while hiking and abseiling in this alpine region. The rock climbing and walking group spent time exploring waterfalls and the stunning orange rock cliffs of the Northern Grampians region while the Lake Eildon National Park group enjoyed bushwalks and paddling on the lake. We are very proud of the way our girls displayed a positive mindset whilst on camp. They clearly enjoyed the benefits that Outdoor Education and time in nature provide… feelings of happiness, selfdiscovery, digital detox, renewed creativity and a strong sense of community.
Are You Flourishing in 2022?
Year 7
Jo Stackhouse Outdoor Education Coordinator
Year 9
Year 8
Today I would like to share with you the talk I shared with the Year 12 Class of 2022 around the topic of, “Are you flourishing?” I was asked that question by my former Theology Professor, Mr Peter Adam, a man I have a great respect for. The question caught me off guard because as we met, we were just exchanging casual greetings and handshakes, back when it was socially acceptable! I had asked him how we was going. He had ‘returned serve’ and asked me, but he didn’t stop there, he finished the greeting with; “And how are you going Nick... are you flourishing?” This really got me thinking, to flourish I imagine you could not honestly answer with a “yes” if you were tired from too much YouTube or Netflix. You couldn’t honestly answer “yes” if you’d been neglecting your diet by hiding the good chocolate in the vegetable section of the fridge, so the kids didn’t find it. You couldn’t answer “yes” if you neglected your emotional and spiritual health by going to bed angry rather than handing things over to God. So, what does it mean to flourish? Is it possible after two very difficult years navigating COVID? Well, I believe it is possible, and that is part of the message of what God can do in your life. To begin I needed a definition. The English word ‘flourish’ means to grow in a healthy and vigorous way, it is derived from the Latin ‘florere’, meaning to flower. To thrive. The opposite would be to fade or decline. So, in sharing with the Class of 2022, I said I can offer three ways to help us with this idea of flourishing: • Vision • The role of faith • Your legacy or to put it another way, what will you leave behind? Vision includes the ability to be in the ‘now’ as well as to take in the bigger picture. It includes the ability to think about or plan the future with imagination and wisdom. Isn’t imagination a competency we need more and more in these challenging days? Less time on our phones and more time flexing our creative muscles! Having a vision means looking and planning ahead, but not to the neglect of the here and now. When we lose sight of both, we can get hurt.
As I was running on the beach, barefoot over the break I was enjoying watching a big storm out at sea. It wasn’t long before I had painfully run into a log and stubbed my toe. While we can look forward to the future it must not be to the neglect of being in the present. The role of faith is an enormously important role when it comes to flourishing. I shared three English translations of Proverbs 29:18 which says: “Where there is no vision, the people perish: but he that keepeth the law, happy is he.” KJV “When people do not accept divine guidance, they run wild. But whoever obeys the law is joyful”. “Where there is no revelation, people cast off restraint; but blessed is the one who heeds wisdom’s instruction”. NIV Albert Einstein said, “The deeper one penetrates into nature’s secrets, the greater becomes one’s respect for God.” We are so fortunate at PLC that as a Christian school we not only allow space for faith, but we openly encourage our community to consider the invitational love of God, that He has shown us in Jesus to be a part of our life. When we invite God in, He transforms our life and the darkness to light. Someone once said, “the heart of the human problem is the problem of the human heart.” Try as we may, no matter what we achieve, build or create, we can’t seem to get rid of the brokenness, but God can. Consider God’s invitation to get to know him. Through his Holy Spirit he can bring a peace that passes all understanding, transform, empower, refine and help you to flourish.
Finally, to flourish we need to think about our legacy, considering the question “what will you leave behind?” For this part of the talk, I asked the girls to consider if they knew the person behind some of the many traditions and events that we still currently practise at PLC. There are many fine examples of amazing female leaders who have helped so many at PLC to flourish so I had a lot of examples to choose from, but on this occasion I chose to share the example of Mrs Elizabeth Ward, PLC’s ninth Principal. Due to running out of space I will leave her remarkable achievement aside for now. The point was that Mrs Ward was an amazing example of someone who not only passionately advocated for girls’ education, but she also had a big vision for PLC as both proudly Australian and proudly global. We celebrate the many diverse cultures that make up our special community. She was a faithful follower of Jesus. She was strategic but also warm and knew how to laugh and celebrate. She left PLC in very good shape and her parting gift was the flags that line the back of Wyselaskie Hall that remind us of the richness of our many cultures. Vision, faith and legacy. Not the only components to flourish in life but certainly three very important ingredients. May you flourish this year and may you know God’s transforming love, peace and grace. Reverend Nick Curtis Director of Christian Ministries
15
