There is nothing quite like Grandparents Day at Berwick Academy. In recent years we have seen as many as 500 grandparents and special friends on our campus, and we are looking forward to another big crowd this week. For me, there is always something about the day that offers perspective to our work as both educators and parents. During the crazy fury of the school year’s end, this day seemingly forces all of us to reflect on the centrality of family and love in our lives.
So often I am stuck by comments from grandparents who actually listen to and appreciate my speeches in unexpected ways. They ask about my family, and they comment on how lucky kids are to go to Berwick Academy. It is true that we, as a school, try to put on our best face for this day. Beds are mulched for the first time, we plant a few extra flowers, and we even ask students to dress up more formally. Some could argue that we overdo this and that we should present ourselves to our guests in more typical fashion. I must say, however, that the energy level on campus is always at an extreme peak, and there is a certain sense of Berwick Academy pride that surges across the Hilltop on this morning each year.
On a personal level, I never spend enough time thanking my parents for all they have done for me. I don’t think one fully appreciates that until you find yourself in the muddle of trying to raise children of your own. For me, Mom and Dad always modeled hard work and integrity in all that they did, and I think that this modeling had a powerful impact on my life. They also put a premium on fostering independent children who would be able to make it on their own. While I think they have been largely successful in that pursuit, one also realizes that we always need our parents. We need them in different ways in different phases of our life. As I find myself in transition this summer, I find myself leaning on them in all sorts of surprising ways. Grandparents Day helps me remember that we can’t take this for granted.
I always tell seniors that springtime is an experience in “the first of the lasts,” and this one feels like a nostalgic last for me as well – my final Grandparents Day at Berwick Academy. It certainly has impact upon me as a Head of School, prompting me to reflect on just how much it has grown in the past decade. But even more so, this day impacts me as a Dad – a father of three excited girls, a husband to an amazing wife, and certainly as an indebted son as well.
So often I am stuck by comments from grandparents who actually listen to and appreciate my speeches in unexpected ways. They ask about my family, and they comment on how lucky kids are to go to Berwick Academy. It is true that we, as a school, try to put on our best face for this day. Beds are mulched for the first time, we plant a few extra flowers, and we even ask students to dress up more formally. Some could argue that we overdo this and that we should present ourselves to our guests in more typical fashion. I must say, however, that the energy level on campus is always at an extreme peak, and there is a certain sense of Berwick Academy pride that surges across the Hilltop on this morning each year.
On a personal level, I never spend enough time thanking my parents for all they have done for me. I don’t think one fully appreciates that until you find yourself in the muddle of trying to raise children of your own. For me, Mom and Dad always modeled hard work and integrity in all that they did, and I think that this modeling had a powerful impact on my life. They also put a premium on fostering independent children who would be able to make it on their own. While I think they have been largely successful in that pursuit, one also realizes that we always need our parents. We need them in different ways in different phases of our life. As I find myself in transition this summer, I find myself leaning on them in all sorts of surprising ways. Grandparents Day helps me remember that we can’t take this for granted.I always tell seniors that springtime is an experience in “the first of the lasts,” and this one feels like a nostalgic last for me as well – my final Grandparents Day at Berwick Academy. It certainly has impact upon me as a Head of School, prompting me to reflect on just how much it has grown in the past decade. But even more so, this day impacts me as a Dad – a father of three excited girls, a husband to an amazing wife, and certainly as an indebted son as well.
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