School does take it out of you, there’s no doubt. Now that term has settled down and most of us have got used to the new way that some things have to happen, the cogs are turning and intermeshing as they always do and the pace is accelerating. When Friday comes it is needed – you can read it in the faces of both boys and staff, but I can also read the tell-tale signs of adrenaline and excitement as the days pass. The highs make it all worthwhile, the mass yoga session on No11 Lawn, the Friday Debate, the Year 7 team building at Britford Lane. As much as classroom learning is the staple diet of every week here, it is those other things that lend colour and make the time pass so fast, and they also help everyone to keep the lows in perspective. Thus the significant ICT glitches that we have faced since the start of term and the hideous weather at the end of the week were firmly put in their place, despite the former causing headaches for many and the latter leading to flooding for some. Despite everything I still went to the gym on Friday evening feeling upbeat, and that feeling persists. It is good to be back.
I felt that the opportunity to read some poetry on Thursday as part of the National Day of Verse also played its part in tackling the gathering gloom. As usual Mr Ennew (Head of English) sent out a plea to teachers to choose a poem to read before each of their classes started. As yet I’ve not seen a list, but for my Year 12 classes I chose Ted Hughes’ evocative poem ‘The Horses’ in the morning and then Adrian Henri’s scouse love poem ‘Without You’ for after lunch. Both, in their way, lighten the spirits and point to emotions that are above and beyond our current trials and tribulations. The boys and girls listened and (I think) enjoyed the novelty of hearing an unexpected piece of poetry in performance from the Head; what I hope now is that they take the time to re-read, think about the words and meaning and continue their own journey through verse, the journey of a lifetime.
Poetry, then, may be able to help, and I will finish with a bitter-sweet conclusion to a story that ended when the Irish poet Derek Mahon’s death on National Poetry Day last week. I read some of his words during the period of lockdown and in fact I tweeted a link to Andrew Scott’s reading of his beautifully reassuring poem ‘Everything is going to be All Right’ back in July. I am told that the poem, and that reading, went viral and I’m not in the least surprised as it feels absolutely what we all need in times like these. So, on a wet Sunday afternoon and the sun a stranger to the greyed winter sky here is the link once again https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZRmKX50myoQ&feature=youtu.be
Enjoy – and have a great week!
SDS
