>> write // saint mary's college high school // winter 2012

February 24, 2012

Dearest Student-Musicians,

Thank you for your hard work and dedication this year. We've shared many stories this year, we've worked through our difficulties, and we came to realize that music and singing, in particular, is necessary for a life well-lived. I hope we also came to realize that singing requires a radical vulnerability to bare our voices and our deepest selves and to offer these gifts to others in the hope that we might be accepted for who we are.

I was particularly touched when I heard from a fellow teacher that a student had mentioned to him that "while others were sitting in class listening to lectures, I was in chorus doing what I love to do best: sing." Thank you all for inspiring me, for making me a better teacher, and for reminding me that I have the greatest job in the world.

I look forward to building on our successes from this year, and to striving for even greater heights next year. To our graduating seniors: thank you for your wisdom and your generosity. I wish you the very best that this life has to offer. May the road rise to meet you, and may the wind blow gently at your back.

In closing, please take these words with you wherever you go:

"So when at times the mob is swayed
To carry praise or blame too far,
We may choose something like a star
To stay our minds on and be staid."

Mr Trinidad