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Informer - Term 2 Week 9

From Our Principal...

Dear Families

This story is an oldie but a goldie. The reflection is not mine, but I came across it as I was researching professional development opportunities for my own PD plan. At times, we are all very guilty of putting our own wellbeing and development aside and directing our priorities elsewhere; work, family, friends. The very clear message below is that we need to ‘sharpen our own axes’ to be effective and present to those around us. The need to focus on all facets of our lives is very real, we can’t just polish one aspect and expect that it will affect everything else. It is an interesting challenge for us all.

Have a great week and hug your kids.

Jamie Emerick
Principal

Once upon a time, there were two woodcutters named Peter and John. They would often argue over who chopped more wood. So, one day, they decided to hold a competition to determine the winner. The rules were simple—whoever produce the most wood in a day wins.

The next day morning, both of them took up their positions in the forest and started chopping away in their fastest possible speed. This lasted for an hour before Peter suddenly stopped. When John realized that there was no chopping sound from his opponent’s side, he thought: “Ah Ha! He must be tired already!” And he continued to cut down his trees with double the pace.

A quarter of an hour passed, and John heard his opponent chopping again. So both of them carried on chopping. John was starting to feel weary when the chopping from Peter stopped once again. Feeling motivated and smelling victory close by, John continued on, with a smile on his face.

This went on the whole day. Every hour, Peter would stop chopping for fifteen minutes while John kept going relentlessly. So when the competition ended, John was absolutely confident that he would take the triumph.

But to John’s astonishment, Peter had actually cut down more wood. How did this even happen? “How could you have chopped down more trees than me? I heard you stop working every hour for fifteen minutes!”, exclaimed John.

Peter replied, “Well, it’s really simple. Every time I stopped work, while you were still chopping down trees, I was sharpening my axe.”

Everybody, everywhere seems to be busy. Most people are just too busy doing and trying to achieve that they do not take the necessary time to renew themselves, to learn and grow—to sharpen the “axe”.

How exactly do you sharpen the axe?

We overwork ourselves amidst the overwhelming tasks at hand. We feel drained, exhausted and our productivity declines. Do we simply take a break, rest and relax? That isn’t sharpening the axe—that’s just putting the axe down. The blade will still be dull after your break. Yes, the woodcutter needs to rest, but it’s only when he sharpens his blade, learns new techniques, trains up his strength and stamina, that he becomes more productive.

Dr. Stephen R Covey defined “Sharpen Your Saw (or Axe)” to be: increasing your personal productivity, by having a balanced strategy to renew yourself in the four aspects of life: Physical, Social, Mental, and Spiritual.

Physical: Eating well, sleeping well and exercising well.

Social/Emotional: Having a good social life. Building meaningful connections with others.

Mental: Learning something new, reading (books are your mentors), and writing.

Spiritual: Expanding spiritual self through meditation, spending time relaxing in nature.

Feeling good doesn’t just happen. You need to take the necessary time to create growth and change in your life. Arianna Huffington urges us to sleep our way to increased productivity, happiness, and smarter decision-making. Warren Buffet credits his great money decisions to his voracious reading habit (80% of his time is spent on reading). Toyota invests time and money into their employees, developing a continuous improvement culture—a true model for a learning organization.

Remember that every day is a brand new opportunity to recharge, renew, and refine yourself. Devote some moments into sharpening your axe instead of chopping away doggedly: start working smarter instead of longer.

https://screeble.com/blog/2017/03/07/story-of-two-woodcutters/

Andrew Chinn Concert

It was wonderful to host Andrew Chinn last week. As always, he delighted the crowd and had student interaction throughout his performance. Schools in Australia and New Zealand use many of his songs for masses and liturgies. He is inspirational and the children enjoyed every minute.

Andrew Chinn Concert

Gladstone City Athletics

A team of 35 St John’s students attended Gladstone’s City Athletics Trials and were simply
outstanding in their effort, results and sportsmanship.

It was evident that their training and hard work over the last few months have awarded them with many outstanding achievements.

Below are the results from Friday’s Carnival and we wish all students who are now selected for Port Curtis Athletics Trials the best of luck.

We will continue to provide training opportunities for our students continued success.

Results

1500m
Maverick Nassar – 1^stKaylee Simpson – 1^stHarry McAdam – 1^stShana Paterson – 1^stLevi Prossliner – 1^stMiley Jackson – 1^stJonty Smallcombe – 2^ndCody Peachey – 3^rdLayla Elkins – 4^th

800m
Kaylee Simpson – 1^stMaverick Nassar – 1^stShana Paterson – 1^stHarry McAdam – 1^stLevi Prossliner – 1^stColby Smith – 2^ndMiley Jackson – 2^ndNixon Lee – 2^ndCody Peachey – 3^rd

Discus
Ben Kim – 2^nd

100m
Kym Major – 1^stTofunmi Kaka – 1^stLayla Byers – 2^ndElle – Jaye Attard – 2^ndParker Bowman – 3^rd

200m
Kym Major – 1^stTofunmi Kaka – 1^stLevi Prossliner – 1^stParker Bowman – 1^stLayla Byers – 2^ndLogan Kerr – 2^ndBraxton Bock – 2^nd

High Jump
Tofunmi Kaka – 1^stKaylee Simpson – 2^ndNash Young – 3^rdLayla Byers – 4^th

Long Jump
Elle-Jaye Attard - 1st
Tofunmi Kaka – 1^stIsabella Robertson – 2^ndParker Bowman – 2^nd

Shot Putt
Daniel Reid – 2^ndKym Major – 3^rd

Discus
Kaylee Simpson – 1^stKym Major – 4^th

St John's Got Talent Returns

Paper Plane Team - FIRST PLACE

Congratulations to the St John the Baptist Paper Plane Team (The Spitfires), who won First Place at the annual interschool competition. Our ‘squadron’ defeated teams from not only a number of primary schools, but also representatives from four of the high schools in the Gladstone Region.

Exciting News

A Lego Club for students will begin in Term 3. Mrs Spencer will be opening her classroom to students each Tuesday at first break to allow the Lego imagination to flow into amazing creations!

Watch this space..........