This Week in St. Francis de Sales School
This has been quite a Holy Week! Our staff has continued to shine in their efforts to live the SFDS core values: faith, learn, achieve, mercy, engage and serve.
Gradually, as the days of this week went by, it became clear that we were finding the path forward....Voices grew more confident, smiles were wider, uplifting and inspiring material was shared with one another, shoulders lifted and the fog cleared. This was visible in the staff members who came to school to prepare lessons and 'meet' with students, heard from those that worked from home and who participated enthusiastically in our online staff meetings, and seen in how parents were interacted with when they came to collect the student belongings from our gym. May I just say how wonderful it was to see you, and to hear that you were managing, and to feel your appreciation for our efforts.
On my way out the back door of the school one afternoon, I took the time to double check that the plum tree that we'd planted to honour the life of our former kindergarten teacher, Mrs. Margaret Goyarzu, was blooming....and sure enough, it definitely was! I wondered what she would think of all that is happening, and am confident that it is her spirit along with that of our patron, St. Francis de Sales himself, that is at work in the lives of all that knew her and invoke him!
Then - during this Holy Week when I was feeling mournful that we could not mark the occasion with students in the building - I came across an Instagram 'one minute homily' by Fr. Michael Rossmann, SJ, in which he describes how much he is looking forward to planting a garden. He goes on to say: "An important part is compost: material that is dead that can nourish new life. We have had to die to many things during this time. We could focus on all that we are missing or we could allow this experience to produce new life, to make us more resilient, more compassionate, more grateful for all that we do have. Death, followed by new life, is central to the Christian story that we celebrate this week and it's deeply relevant to our lives. This time of pandemic can shape us into people who are at an Olympic level in dealing with difficult realities....even the fact that the Olympics have been postponed! Lent is now coming to an end, though we still need to fast from many things as we continue to stay at home...We can lament what we lost or we can treat this time like compost and allow it to produce new life."
As you and your families enter into the weekend starting with Good Friday where we relive the Passion of our Lord, then Holy Saturday - that strangest of times between the tragedy of entering into the death of Jesus Christ until he rises at long last on Easter Sunday when we can celebrate His victory over death - maybe you can see the analogy between what we are experiencing and the eventual end of this 'agony in the garden'.
I know that with the help of our school staff, we will indeed allow this time of compost to produce new life. I'm including, of course, Mrs. Hatzisavva, Mr. Bencze, and Mr. Timbang along with Father Smith who regularly checks in on us to ensure our spiritual well being is cared for. Like Fr. Rossman describes, they are all working at an 'Olympic level'. I have no doubt that you parents are doing the same. We pray for you daily. Remember we are a team. We are a community.
And: We can do all things through Christ!
May the spirit of the risen Lord fill your home this Easter and all the rest of your days!
https://thejesuitpost.org/2020/04/a-guide-to-celebrating-the-easter-triduum-at-home/