You are so lucky you can order food online and have it delivered. When I was your age, I had to walk 5 miles uphill in the snow just to get to the store and find out that the Hostess Company had stopped making Twinkies. I had to turn around and walk 5 miles back home (also uphill in the snow). By the time I got there, the news on the radio – yes, radio – not Satellite or Spotify. I’m talking about the little box with knobs and dials that I thought had a little tiny band inside of it. I really believed that until I was 6, when I ‘accidentally’ broke one open because I wanted Olivia Newton John’s autograph. Childhood ruined! The news on the radio said they were making Twinkies again. I like Twinkies, but unless there was a moose parked outside that I could saddle up and ride, I wasn’t going back. OK, I did go back, because… Twinkies.

My point is that these are truly amazing times. Pay attention to that. Be thankful.

Send Twinkies if you have them!

All along the way, we reflected on the current world situation, the spread of the virus, research we had read, our conversations with colleagues around the world, and our own personal experiences as leaders, teachers, and students in online settings. We planned for the future by reflecting on current events and past experiences, both personal and otherwise, just in case we had to put those past experiences into action. Reflection is often viewed as something we do after an event has already occurred, or after a decision has been made. When looking at the IB Learner Profile and the descriptor of a reflective person, however, we see that reflection is much more than looking at the past. It is looking at the past, the present, and the future in order to learn and develop.

With our move to online learning, our students have had to consider their planning, time management, and communication skills in order to successfully navigate the more independent nature of online learning. They have had to focus on their own strengths and weaknesses in order to support their own learning and personal development. Of course, they have not been alone in this as parents, teachers and leadership have provided support, while also reflecting on our own learning and personal development. I hope you will all take some time to reflect on how you have grown as a learner and as an individual through the challenges you have faced and have overcome these past few months. Adversity provides us with great opportunity to grow, but only if we act on the knowledge gained through those experiences. How will you apply what you have learned about yourself these last few months to your own personal growth? You know, just in case.