November 28

You may have already heard, but just in case you haven't heard, my goal scoring was snapped at 1 game 4 games ago.  Yes, I am playing in the plus 60 hockey league this fall and I am enjoying the league.  Every 6 weeks, new teams are formed.  There are 12 teams for this 6 six week session.  Every team has 10 skaters.  First line players are usually in their 60s and second line players are in their 70s and 80s.  You always play against players of similar ability.  The league is fun, the guys are friendly, and the workout is great.
Today, I pulled a double header.  I played 5 games of volleyball in the morning and a game of hockey in the afternoon.

On Saturday, I returned my travel trailer to the lake after some warranty work. On my way back to the city, I swung by Warman and took Mary out for supper at the Wagon Wheel Restaurant.  It was good to have some quality/quantity time with Mary. On Sunday, I finally got my Christmas lights in place.  After church, I met the girls and Dustin for Dim Sum.  The Grey Cup party was one of the best.  I really enjoyed the game and the food.

Principal’s Message – April 06

"Our character is what we do when we think no one is looking."Jackson Browne

I am very concerned with reading levels, mathematical competence, spelling accuracy, fine arts appreciation, fitness levels, and a whole host of other education indicators, but there are some times when my greatest wish is for a child to have a conscience.    We all want every child to be motivated to follow ethical and moral principles that govern their thoughts and actions.  We want them to have a sense of right and wrong as well as a feeling of shame when they do something immoral.  We want them to do the right thing when no one is looking.  We want children to demonstrate character, but how do you attain character? 

            Some children seem to be born with a conscience while other children raised in the same household and raised by the same set of parents seem to lack conscience.  One child will fall apart when you raise your voice while another child has a tough shell that makes them impervious to correction.  The same sun that melts the butter bakes the clay.  Children are different when they are born.  Their chemical make up, physical strength, intellectual abilities, learning styles, and a myriad of other things are unique.  I am not convinced that a child can be born with a conscience, but I am sure that adults need to teach a child that it is wrong to be lazy, steal, lie, cheat, hold a grudge, gossip, etc.  Yes, we have to nurture their conscience so they will be able to do the right thing when no one is looking.

            Indeed, we have to devote the same amount of effort to teaching character as we do to teaching academics.  In fact, a child is more likely to be a successful student if he/she has a strong conscience.  The message for adults is to teach children to be kind, hardworking, forgiving, understanding, honest, responsible, and grateful.

November 23

Yesterday, I traveled to Moose Jaw, then paid a visit to a Hutterite Colony near Eyebrow.  Our hosts were wonderful people.  We were guided through the chicken barns and the egg laying operations.  I also saw the kitchen and food storage facilities.  Very impressive.

Today was perogy making day.  My usual dilemma is making too much filling which, in turn, means I have to make more dough.  Then I have too much dough so I have to use up the dough making cherry perogies.

This installment of Principal's message is one I have shared before and I will share the piece again, I'm sure, because it is my favorite.  I can easily get choked up reading the article every time I read the words.

PRINCIPAL’S MESSAGE

What do I remember about Christmas when I was in elementary school?  Well, the Co-op set up a Christmas store and the Galaxy Theater would have a free matinee such as Son of Flubber.  Following the matinee, we would file out past Santa Claus who handed out a goodie bag with a Japanese orange, peanuts, and hard candy.  Santa was also the town garbage man, the referee for the senior men’s hockey team, and a bit of a grump for most of the year.  In front of Beaver Lumber, old Hughie Lewis sold Christmas trees for less than five dollars.  Old Hughie lived north of Nut Mountain and he had a long beard.  The elementary school performed at The Carol Festival in the high school gym.  Grade One always sang “Away in a Manger”.  There was usually lots of snow when we went to the candle light service on Christmas Eve.  My dad, who worked as a logger during the winter, would come out the bush north of Hudson Bay and he would get a few days with our family.  Mom would prepare fruit cake, gum drop cake, Nanaimo bar, perogies, cabbage rolls, and the freezer would be full.  My older brothers and sisters would be home for the holidays.  We always played a lot of card games.  Ah, Christmas memories.  We all have them.

            My wife and I have created a set of memories for our children.  My wife starts by watching a Christmas movie on Halloween, baking on the November long weekend, and having the house decorated by December 1^st.  The girls take turns moving the star on the Advent Calendar.  We have a houseful of people after Christmas Eve Service and my wife always has as many varieties of foods as Dodd’s has kidney pills.  There are more memories and family traditions.  Every family has their own way to celebrate the season and that is okay.

            Interestingly, when I ask my Grade Five students to write about their Christmas memories and traditions, they cannot think of much to write and it is not because they do not exist.  What I am suggesting to all parents and community members is to create memories with children and remind the children of the memories.  Talk about them often.  Be like my mother who reminds me of every goofy thing I ever did.  Tell the same old stories.  Your kids will thank you some day and they will get a lump in their throat when they remember people like the old guy in front of the lumber yard with a beard selling Christmas trees and driving his old red truck home to the North Pole - north of Nut Mountain.

November 20

Tomorrow will mark nine months since Judy's death.  A wise friend of mine told me something interesting about Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD).  With PTSD, thoughts and feelings come up on the anniversary of traumatic events uninvited.  The healthy thing to do is acknowledge the event, anticipate and discuss the event and the feelings that accompany the trauma.  Don't push the feelings down. Grieve.

I think I have mentioned how Mary, Morgan, Dustin, Haley, and I get together once a week for a meal. I am glad that we connect at least once a week.  We talk about Judy.  Praise God, we have many good memories of our Beloved Judy.  Even the painful memories are accompanied by the courage, hope, grace, and positive approach that Judy demonstrated.

Tonight's fare was perogies (Haley), Mennonite sausage (Dustin, of course), Christmas pudding with rum/eggnog sauce (Mary), Greek Salad (Me), and hunting stories (Morgan).

I love my girls because they are full of grace, hope, courage, and positive attitude...no surprise given their mother's legacy.  I love their husbands, too.  I am truly blessed.

November 16

I had breakfast this morning with the beautiful ladies who taught with Judy at Valley Manor School.  I was the only rooster among the hens, but they treated me nicely.   I also played my second game of hockey this week with my new team.  I had to defend against a player on the other team who I am sure played in the WHL, if not the NHL.  Surprisingly, I even scored a goal.  That always gives me a boost.

Principal's Message from 2006

At one time during my teaching career, I ran a basketball club with over 50 boys and girls. At the end of the season, our club hosted a Saturday tournament with 12 teams playing on three different courts. I entered three teams from my club. Parents volunteered to run a concession booth and two parents volunteered to coach. Referees were in place and we were ready to go

            Unfortunately, there was a mix up and only one referee arrived. At the last minute I recruited a grade seven boy to referee and I was forced into action as a referee. I also had to coach in games I was refereeing. If you are keeping track, I was coaching a team, refereeing a game, finding a key to the concession, directing traffic, supplying locker rooms, serving soup, assigning scorekeepers and developing a nervous twitch.

            After five whirlwind hours of multitasking, I as refereeing a game and a parent from another town was watching a game that I was refereeing and took time out of her busy day to inform me I missed an “out of bounds” call. I could have gone ballistic, but I bit my tongue. Didn’t she know that I was having a rough day, the tournament was for fun only, I was not spending the day with my own family, and I was not getting a cent for all I was enduring?

            That night, I felt incredibly sad; however, my sadness could not compare with an overwhelming feeling of gratitude for the volunteers who showed up. I sat down and wrote each person a letter of thanks for “stepping to the plate.”

            No one can appreciate the work of volunteers like a volunteer. Over the years, I have observed the busiest volunteers being the most thankful for other volunteers who stand up and deliver. Secondly, I have also noticed how volunteers make you feel they are the lucky ones because they have the privilege of helping others. Another thing I have witnessed is the incredible hurt that results when people who are not volunteering criticize the efforts of those who do volunteer without offering to help.

            Ten lepers were healed and only one person came back to say thanks. Saying thank you is important.

November 9

Principal’s Message:

Several years ago, I was seconded by the company that produces the Canadian Achievement Tests.  My task was to establish examples of good writing and poor writing.  I had to rate a multitude of grade five written assignments on a four point scale.  Grade five students had been given a story starter and they were asked to complete the story.  The most startling observation was the lack of imagination displayed by the poorer grade five writers.

            A significant portion of their imaginings came from their experiences in playing video games or television cartoons.  They tried to string together incoherent characters and events that seemed to describe their last video experience.  The stories lacked plot, character development, and descriptive settings.  The stories were cold and unimaginative.

            On the other hand, the best stories displayed ideas that are commonly found in books.  In addition, there were references to places students had traveled and experiences they had enjoyed.  There were problems and solutions, heroes and villains, and a host of wonderful settings.  The stories were thoughtful and imaginative.

            Now, I am not suggesting video games are causing young minds to shrivel up.  I will leave that debate to another writer.  I am suggesting that reading to children and introducing children to good literature is invaluable.  Taking children on holidays, field trips, errands, jobs, or even to the car wash can provide fuel for the imagination.  Introducing children to ideas and experiences is a good thing.  The mind goes from the “off” position to the “on” position.

            Children need to have an ever expanding supply of ideas, facts, and experiences.  They are like pieces of Lego that can be taken apart and reassembled to create something new – something imaginative.  The more pieces we give our children, the more they will have to create, to grow, and to imagine.

November 8

I found this old principal's message from  2006.  The topic of trust has been on my mind lately.  I've learned that you can forgive people by God's grace, but you do not necessarily have to trust the person you have forgiven.  The offending person has to earn that trust.

 Principal's Message from 2006

Two years ago I was involved in a research study on trust conducted by two professors from the University of Saskatchewan.  The research method was novel.  Several principals got together for a period of three hours to tell stories of how trust was built and broken.  The stories are recorded, examined, and distilled for the purpose of finding the truth about what really builds trust and breaks trust.  Indeed trust is critical in creating an effective school.  Parents need to trust teachers.  Teachers need to trust one another.  Principals need to trust teachers.  Students need to trust teachers, and so on.

            Trust is like a banking system where daily deposits and withdrawals are constantly being made.  When you have built a wealth of trust you are able to make a withdrawal by asking people to place their trust in you.  When you are in debt, serious deposits must be made before people will trust you again. 

            How does a person build a wealth of trust? I think I have found a sound financial plan in the “be attitudes”.  You must be humble.  Acknowledge your defects and be modest about your accomplishments.  Listen to others and accept the fact you can always learn more.  You must mourn.  When you have done wrong, you should admit your fault and make amends.  You should be meek.  Treat people with patience and practice self-control.  You should be kind.  Love is something when you give it away because you end up getting more. Share. Compliment. Congratulate. Celebrate.  Give. You should be merciful.  When you show mercy, people will be merciful toward you.  You should be pure.  When you are tainted, people will have a hard time seeing beyond your improprieties.  You should seek peace.  It is not enough to keep your own fence well-mended, you should help to mend fences with the people around you.  You should do the right thing, not the popular thing.  There are times when doing right will not win you a popularity contest. 

            We all know what a fleeting thing wealth is.  One event can bankrupt a fortune.  Let us all continue to build trust daily and when trust is broken, let us do what we can to broker trust.  At the end of the day, we will all benefit from the wealth we build together.

Trusting you will understand,

                                                                                                                                                              A. J. Kolach