On Friday 7th May, Year 11 ventured to the beautiful Stanwell Tops, albeit amongst mist and drizzle, for a Reflection Day focused on ‘Becoming a Man for Others’. The day began by considering our place in the universe with ‘The Cosmic Walk’ and keynote speaker Brett Connellan. Brett, a local professional surfer, was attacked by a shark in 2015. He shared his story of survival, struggle, resilience and triumph, leaving the boys with the pearls of wisdom he gained from this traumatic life event. Inspired, the boys spent the day moving between 5 workshops focussed on mindfulness, pottery, goal setting, team building and trust, all designed to facilitate reflection on the past, becoming more present in the moment and planning the future. A special thanks goes to Mrs Woolnough, Mr Tyler, Mrs Anderson, Mr Brooks, Mr Edmondson, Mrs Cavanagh, Mrs Lothian, Mrs Timmins, Mr Jackson and Mrs Russell for leading the groups throughout the day, Mrs Hurley, Mr Pullella, Ms Herrmann, Mrs Knowles and Mrs Cranney for facilitating the wonderful workshops, and to the Year 11 boys for your openness, joy and enthusiasm.
Some reflections on the day from the boys:
Listening to Brett’s story puts into perspective just how much we take for granted everyday.
Overall the reflection day was perfect; beautiful location and good activities made the day absolutely amazing, everything from the opening liturgy to listening to Brett Connellan about his shark attack and my personal favourite, the trust walk. Again, overall the reflection day was perfect and it was awesome I could share it with all my mates
The wellbeing exercise was extremely useful, reflective and any effort to support our mental health is so integral and important in our lives, and appreciated by us students.
The experience was productive, showing the different walks of life with the overall message for students is that there are no absolutes so quit stressing about what is to come and enjoy the present. If we live how we wish to live we will be remembered fondly.
Mr Toohey
Head of Religion Studies
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