Dear Colleagues,

We have finally come to the end of the Semester. We have many things to be grateful for in spite of the joys and difficulties of the incidents and events of the last 2 terms. Let us take this time, while we pause, to look back at what we have done well, and understand what made it go well. At the same time, let us examine the difficulties that we face, and let's think about how we can make things better.

We will also be starting work on our planning and deployment for next year. To help our planning, Do let us know by the end of the June holidays, do let me know if you intend to go on Part-Time employment. There are some difficult realities we need to confront as a school. Given our increasing cohort size (due to mergers of other schools), the need for the form classes to be supervised in the mornings, have sufficient teachers for CCA as well as the shrinking number of teachers our school is allocated, we will not be able to sustainably continue the same kind of arrangements for part-time employment and we will have to plan and consider more carefully each individual request for part-time employment. So do let me know your needs so that we can discuss options for you to explore in case we are not able to accede to your specific need.

Here's a story to end the busy term:

Once upon a time, a psychology professor walked around on a stage while teaching stress management principles to an auditorium filled with students. As she raised a glass of water, everyone expected they’d be asked the typical “glass half empty or glass half full” question.

Instead, with a smile on her face, the professor asked, “How heavy is this glass of water I’m holding?” Students shouted out answers ranging from eight ounces to a couple of pounds. She replied, “From my perspective, the absolute weight of this glass doesn’t matter. It all depends on how long I hold it. If I hold it for a minute or two, it’s fairly light. If I hold it for an hour straight, its weight might make my arm ache a little. If I hold it for a day straight, my arm will likely cramp up and feel completely numb and paralyzed, forcing me to drop the glass to the floor.

In each case, the weight of the glass doesn’t change, but the longer I hold it, the heavier it feels to me.” As the class shook their heads in agreement, she continued, “Your stresses and worries in life are very much like this glass of water. Think about them for a while and nothing happens. Think about them a bit longer and you begin to ache a little. Think about them all day long, and you will feel completely numb and paralyzed – incapable of doing anything else until you drop them.”

The moral: It’s important to remember to let go of your stresses, hurts, anger and worries. No matter what happens during the day, as early in the evening as you can, put all your burdens down. Don’t carry them through the night and into the next day with you. If you still feel the weight of yesterday’s stress, it’s a strong sign that it’s time to put the glass down

So, put the glass down and have a good and restful holidays

Keep Believing and Serving,

Timothy Goh