Maria Arpa
This week
Beyond the rules
Plus…
Maria’s Midweek Mindfulness
and
The Wednesday Whisper
A lesson for us all
Given my relentless criticism of the education system, this article gave me hope. Not least of all because it made it into mainstream news. Set in Indiana, a teenage boy refused to take off his hat in school. Instead of just moving to punishment, the Principal decided to try and understand the reason for the boy’s ‘defiance’.
It turned out the boy had been taken for a haircut and it was not a good look for him. Now, comes the lesson. The Principal took time to empathise, after all, who among us hasn’t had a bad hair day, then, as a former barber and with permission from the boy (and his parents) went home, got his clippers and put the hair right for the boy. Everyone was satisfied and the boy did not miss out on learning which would have been the case had he received a suspension. This is restorative practice in action. I imagine this boy will be forever influenced by this act of care.
Maria’s Midweek Mindfulness
These acts of kindness are the most important gifts we can share among us during our day to day lives. I try to be as mindful as I can to seek out opportunities to offer such gifts.
The Wednesday Whisper
When did someone make an extra effort for you? When you do make an extra effort for others?