In their Senior Two year, those in Grade 12 who have something to say to their peers are given an opportunity to speak in Chapel. The process is simple: submit a concept and cross your fingers :) Cannon Lennox along with a few faculty members are the selection committee and they chose Claire's idea!
I am so incredibly proud of my girl.
The idea? WE ARE ENOUGH.
It's nice to know she's been paying attention. She managed to combine together ideas from Maya Angelou, Babe Ruth, One Direction and Brené Brown and gave a wonderful speech. Along with my children, her father, my nephew and my dad we sat in the Appleby Chapel and listened.
Shared with permission:
I believe I am enough. I believe that you are enough too, even if you may not
think so. We all have our
own unique gifts and characteristics that make us all good enough. In order to maintain a life of meaning and goodness,
this concept of being enough is one of the key ingredients to creating a life
of generosity and kindness. Part of kindness is acceptance and non-judgment.
This is my sixth year here at Appleby, and I have
been the recipient of much generosity and kindness. I
would like to be able to encourage the same for every person within our Appleby
community. Everyone should be made to feel like they belong.
Why? Simple. Because we are all enough.
Good morning
faculty, fellow students, and most importantly, my family. I’m here to tell you
my thoughts on acceptance and why we are all enough.
It’s funny. I
have been thinking about this moment since I attended my very first Chapel
Speech given by our Middle School Prefect, Veronica, back when I was in Middle
One. I’ve thought about whether I’m going to need the block to stand on, who
would be here to listen, whether my hymn would be Draw the Circle Wide or not, and
if I’d be able to think about something worth-while to talk to you all about. Standing here
before you all means a lot to me and I am excited to say that I believe that
this topic that I have been building upon for six years is definitely
worthwhile. I hope you think so too.
Accepting others
is a huge part of living a life of goodness. A life of kindness.
So many people
have gone through things that most of us cannot even begin to fathom happening
to ourselves. Scottish author and faithful theologian, Ian Maclaren once said,
“Be kind, for everyone you meet is fighting a hard battle.” The more in life I
experience, the wiser and more inspiring these words become.
Sometimes I
witness such cruelty and mean-spiritedness that I have to stop and wonder what
creates that kind of anger in the person inflicting this pain.
I have come to
realize that they may not believe that they are enough, but the fact is that we are all enough.
“Live your life
like everything you do will be printed on the front page of the Oakville
Beaver.” For those of you who may not know, the Oakville Beaver is our local
newspaper. My mum always
said this to my siblings and me as a way of teaching us to be aware of our words
and actions and how they affect people. Next time you express
a falsehood or make fun of someone for anything from their personal likes and
dislikes to their sexuality/race, and everything in between, would you
reconsider if you knew your words or actions would be emblazoned on the front
page of your local paper?
A friend of mine
once told me that it’s so much more effort to be mean than to be nice, so why
be mean? Why be cruel to others, especially if they don’t deserve it? The affect that
cruelty has applies to two people:
the victim and the offender, and the effects are long-term. The sadness and
guilt builds up inside us and puts an enormous amount of weight on our
shoulders.
Some of you may
be laughing to yourselves right now or giggling with the person next to you
because you know very well that I
have had my fair share of judgmental words and have been mean spirited at
times. Through those
experiences, I have learned that all of that cruelty and meanness stems from a
place of extreme belief that I am not
good enough.
I am no saint and
I am not here to lecture you all about the things you have done wrong.
I’m here to empathize and say that
I’ve been through that too. Empathy, that’s
another good thing to do when accepting others. When someone you know is
struggling, try to think of some way
that you can go to them and say “Me too."
Dr. Maya Angelou
is an accomplished American author, poet, playwright, civil rights activist,
and has over thirty honourary doctorates. She is one of the most fascinating
and influential people of our time, in my opinion, and I was fortunate enough
to be a member of the audience at her lecture in Minneapolis, Minnesota earlier
in October.
One of the main
concepts she talked about was that of Rainbows and Clouds.
You have a choice.
You can be a big,
dark cloud like the one that follows Eeyore around all the time, making him and
everyone else miserable, or you can be a
light and fabulous rainbow of kindness and acceptance, bringing joy and hope to
everyone who sees you. Err on kindness
and bring lightness into people’s lives because light will last forever, but
the darkness will not. Even in the
dreariest of times, if there’s a rainbow in the clouds, there is hope, and each
one of us has the opportunity to be a rainbow in someone’s clouds. You also have to
realize that you have rainbows in your
own clouds that will help you get through any storm.
Even an
unfortunate donkey like Eeyore has rainbows in his clouds, just like you and me.
A couple weeks
ago, after I was accepted to make this speech, I was going through some things
that made me feel like a disappointment to myself and to my family. I kept
telling myself that I wasn’t enough, that I would never be enough.
That was hard.
It’s so easy to
slip into the mindset of thinking that you’re not enough; that you’re just okay. I began telling
myself and believing something very
important, and I want you all to
believe it too: “You’re not just
okay, you are FINE.” That’s another one
of the many things that Dr. Angelou taught us. Every once in a while, when
you’re feeling down, I want you to say that to yourself. “You’re not just okay,
you are fine.” As in “mighty fine”, with a bit of
swagger.
We are all human.
We each have our own personal flaws and strengths, our own imperfections and
successes, but those are what make us who we are. The parts of you
that make you human are the same parts
that make you enough. This includes being vulnerable. Brené Brown, a shame researcher and best-selling author
said in one of her TED Talks that “vulnerability
is not weakness”; that “vulnerability is our most accurate measure of courage.”
In the same talk,
she says “There is nothing more daring than showing up, putting ourselves out
there, and letting ourselves be seen.” The connection between this and
courage is clear – if you’re willing to let everyone see you for everything
that you are and make yourself vulnerable, that is the most courageous thing you can do. The key to happiness and living a
life of goodness is to stop striving to be perfect, just embrace that you are enough.
One Direction says it best, “Being the way you are is enough.”
Most of you who
know me also know that I am in love with sports - namely the amazing game of baseball. I’ve been playing
since I was 5 years old, starting with softball but getting tired of it and
switching to hard ball, and eventually gained enough talent and experience to
play with Team Ontario for two years. After learning a
lot more about the history of the sport and continuous viewing of The Sandlot,
my favourite baseball movie of all time, I began to idolize a great major
league player named Babe Ruth. He played in the major leagues for 22 years and
set records for home runs, RBIs and slugging percentage, for strikes and strike outs
and was among the first few players to be honoured in the National Baseball
Hall of Fame. I wanted to be just like him and totally dominate the major
leagues, despite my gender. I completely believed I could, too. I believed that
someday, I would be good enough to play on the Boston Red Sox. The first female
Major Leaguer ever. Now my goals are set more realistically. I’ll start with a
university team and see where that takes me.
Regardless, Babe
Ruth also said one thing that really resonated with me: “Never let the fear of striking out keep you from playing the game.” This may be a
baseball quote, but it can be applied to anything. When I first thought of what
to write for this speech, I immediately thought of this quote, but with my own
interpretations.
What I thought
was to never let the fear of not being good enough keep you from
being yourself, because you are
good enough in everything you do, and don’t let anyone make you think otherwise.
Believing this is
not an easy practise and to accomplish it does require regular practice, but
just keep telling yourself that you are enough and you will believe it. Dr. Brené
Brown once said “I now see how owning our
story, and loving ourselves through that process, is the bravest thing that we will ever do.”
So, from me to
you, let me end by saying:
Be kind. Be vulnerable. Be yourself, and love yourself because you are enough. We are all
enough.
Now would you all
please stand and sing hymn 572 – Let There Be Light
Wow.
THAT was amazing. My Claire, at sixteen, is amazing. Look out world, here she comes, and she is more than enough.
If you're interested in hearing the speech, it has been posted on You Tube - you'll want to start at 3:50.
Canadian Patriotism
No, that title is not an oxymoron. Most Canadians I know, by birth or by choice, are the most fiercely patriotic people I've ever met. Always compared to Americans, but we are not. Always defined by our natural resources, and hockey players, and comedians. We have a small but mighty population of talented, peaceful, resourceful people and we are generally reserved about touting it. Don't mistake our reserve for anything but what it is: confidence and quiet resolve.
Uncharacteristically, during the brilliant, positively BRILLIANT, opening ceremony of the Olympics last night, the main entertainment portion featured so much, including: fiddlers, tappers, whales, wheat, a lesbian singer, flying children, lit bears, aboriginal performers, snowboarders and a slam poem read by it's author. Honestly, how many nations would represent like that at a major event? There are many places to see fantastic images, for a small selection of incredible photos, head here.
Anyway, it was the poem that stuck with me. (I wasn't able to stay up late enough to see much after the parade of nations. I even missed the lighting ceremony - but managed to catch the highlights on the morning coverage.) Some on twitter and Facebook were shocked at the poem, but being a Canadian, I'm not. I knew exactly what he was saying. Giving voice to what is in the heart of every Canadian I have ever met.
When defining Canada
you might list some statistics
you might mention our tallest building
or biggest lake
you might shake a tree in the fall
and call a red leaf Canada
you might rattle off some celebrities
might mention Buffy Sainte-Marie
might even mention the fact that we've got a few
Barenaked Ladies
or that we made these crazy things
like zippers
electric cars
and washing machines
when defining Canada
it seems the world's anthem has been
" been there done that"
and maybe that's where we used to be at
it's true
we've done and we've been
we've seen
all the great themes get swallowed up by the machine
and turned into theme parks
but when defining Canada
don't forget to mention that we have set sparks
we are not just fishing stories
about the one that got away
we do more than sit around and say "eh?"
and yes
we are the home of the Rocket and the Great One
who inspired little number nines
and little number ninety-nines
but we're more than just hockey and fishing lines
off of the rocky coast of the Maritimes
and some say what defines us
is something as simple as please and thank you
and as for you're welcome
well we say that too
but we are more
than genteel or civilized
we are an idea in the process
of being realized
we are young
we are cultures strung together
then woven into a tapestry
and the design
is what makes us more
than the sum total of our history
we are an experiment going right for a change
with influences that range from a to zed
and yes we say zed instead of zee
we are the colours of Chinatown and the coffee of Little Italy
we dream so big that there are those
who would call our ambition an industry
because we are more than sticky maple syrup and clean snow
we do more than grow wheat and brew beer
we are vineyards of good year after good year
we reforest what we clear
because we believe in generations beyond our own
knowing now that so many of us
have grown past what used to be
we can stand here today
filled with all the hope people have
when they say things like "someday"
someday we'll be great
someday we'll be this
or that
someday we'll be at a point
when someday was yesterday
and all of our aspirations will pay the way
for those who on that day
look towards tomorrow
and still they say someday
we will reach the goals we set
and we will get interest on our inspiration
because we are more than a nation of whale watchers and lumberjacks
more than backpacks and hiking trails
we are hammers and nails building bridges
towards those who are willing to walk across
we are the lost-and-found for all those who might find themselves at a loss
we are not the see-through gloss or glamour
of those who clamour for the failings of others
we are fathers brothers sisters and mothers
uncles and nephews aunts and nieces
we are cousins
we are found missing puzzle pieces
we are families with room at the table for newcomers
we are more than summers and winters
more than on and off seasons
we are the reasons people have for wanting to stay
because we are more than what we say or do
we live to get past what we go through
and learn who we are
we are students
students who study the studiousness of studying
so we know what as well as why
we don't have all the answers
but we try
and the effort is what makes us more
we don't all know what it is in life we're looking for
so keep exploring
go far and wide
or go inside but go deep
go deep
as if James Cameron was filming a sequel to The Abyss
and suddenly there was this location scout
trying to figure some way out
to get inside you
because you've been through hell and high water
and you went deep
keep exploring
because we are more
than a laundry list of things to do and places to see
we are more than hills to ski
or countryside ponds to skate
we are the abandoned hesitation of all those who can't wait
we are first-rate greasy-spoon diners and healthy-living cafes
a country that is all the ways you choose to live
a land that can give you variety
because we are choices
we are millions upon millions of voices shouting
" keep exploring... we are more"
we are the surprise the world has in store for you
it's true
Canada is the "what" in "what's new?"
so don't say "been there done that"
unless you've sat on the sidewalk
while chalk artists draw still lifes
on the concrete of a kid in the street
beatboxing to Neil Young for fun
don't say you've been there done that
unless you've been here doing it
let this country be your first-aid kit
for all the times you get sick of the same old same old
let us be the story told to your friends
and when that story ends
leave chapters for the next time you'll come back
next time pack for all the things
you didn't pack for the first time
but don't let your luggage define your travels
each life unravels differently
and experiences are what make up
the colours of our tapestry
we are the true north
strong and free
and what's more
is that we didn't just say it
we made it be.
Posted on 13 February 2010 at 02:00 PM in celebrating the special occasions, inspiration, made my day, social commentary, sports | Permalink | Comments (6)
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