Lise's Lens: June 2, 2022
In this week's edition, Lise shares an article on "listening styles," a moving Pride presentation from our GSA students and a special guest speaker, and her thoughts on CSW's recent Grandparents & Grandfriends Day event.
WHAT I’M READING
- I enjoyed this recent piece from the Harvard Business Review that walks through some of the different “listening styles” a person may have and offers advice for becoming a more effective listener. I think this practice can be especially important at this time of year as we all reflect on the past year and think — and share our feelings — about future transitions.
WHAT I’M LISTENING TO/WATCHING
- At this week’s assembly in honor of Pride month, students from GSA (Gender and Sexuality Alliance) shared a fantastic presentation that gave a brief history of Pride and some of the key players, in addition to walking us through CSW’s own history with LGBTQIA+ rights, and the evolution of the community over the years. I learned quite a bit! Review the presentation here. We also got to hear from trans activist and speaker Ashton Mota, who shared details of his own coming out story. Being able to tell one’s own story is so incredibly important. Telling our stories is how we forge our identities and gain a sense of belonging. It was especially inspiring to hear from a leader in the community that is the same age as our students.
WHAT I’M THINKING/TALKING ABOUT
- Two weeks ago, I had the great pleasure of speaking with grandparents and grandfriends of our current students. It was a wonderful experience! I so love to share with grandparents the school their grandchildren attend, our mission, values, and dreams, as well as all the going ons of the place. At CSW, truly there is joy in being among diverse people and making friends and connections for life. Our students also receive so much love and encouragement from the adults around them, teachers, advisors, and coaches, and I wanted their grandparents/friends to know that, too. Most of all, here at CSW we strive to have each student be themselves and work to become who they are meant to be, and I know how much grandparents can play a part in that goal.A current grandparent, Gerry Abrams, gifted me a wonderful book his wife, Carol Abrams, co-authored, Grandparents & Grandchildren: Shared Memories, and at our Grandparents Day event, I read a section of the introduction that went right to my heart and spoke to me:Several years ago when her grandfather died, my daughter, Tracy, commented wistfully, "No one will ever smile at me again the way that Poppy did." Her bittersweet lament was both touching and illuminating. For although Tracy had been brought up thousands of miles away from her paternal grandparents, and had infrequent visits with them and little in common with their everyday lives and interests, she nevertheless believed with absolute certainty in her grandfather's unparalleled love.…But whatever the disparity in experiences, one universal theme runs through all the relationships we encountered: The grandparents and grandchildren we talked with love each other unconditionally. There is an absence of the expectation, rivalry, and tension that exists in parent/child and sibling relationships. It's been said that grandparents love their grandchildren "just because they're breathing." One young granddaughter confirmed this, describing her grandfather's feelings for his grandchildren as "He's just glad we were born!"
WHAT CAUGHT MY EYE
I had the pleasure of visiting a local plant nursery with William and Elmer of our facilities team to pick up florals for all of the celebratory events coming up on campus — specifically graduation! I consider myself a green thumb so I just had a blast… and William and Elmer are some of the kindest, hardest working people I know. Be sure to tell them how great campus looks!
The Cambridge School of Weston is a progressive high school for day and boarding students in grades 9–12 and PG. CSW's mission is to provide a progressive education that emphasizes deep learning, meaningful relationships, and a dynamic program that inspires students to discover who they are and what their contribution is to their school, their community and the world.