We had a fine All-School Meeting on Monday, September 12th. The students were thoughtful, engaged and seemed particularly "present."
I had the honor of speaking last, and I used the time to describe my view of the Silent Reflection the 400+ people in the auditorium were about the participate in. This is what I said:
We are going to move into a minute of silent reflection now, and Mrs. Devino will then break the silence to lead us in singing America the Beautiful. You may know that the practice of silent reflection means a great deal to me, and I just wanted to say why, and hope this insight makes sense to you.
Whether you are coming at the silence from the stand point of an actor, who knows the power of a pause . . . a musician, who knows that the space in between the notes can be as important as the note itself . . . an athlete who knows that stillness and rest is essential for healing and peak performance . . . In equal measure, silence invites everyone to participate and offers everyone comfort.
Silent reflection does not promote unnecessary divisions – rather, silence creates the potential to come together, to recognize our connections, and to be grateful for our common good fortune.
So before we close this morning's gathering with song, let’s have a moment of silent reflection together.
