Dear Friends, Parents and Staff
As the term draws to a close and as the examination process reaches its culmination, we are becoming more and more aware of an easing of the impact of the pandemic. However, this is not a time to become complacent and let our guard slip. We have to remain vigilant and compliant with the COVID protocols as long as necessary.
Today is the 11th of September – 9/11. Let’s pause and reflect on how the actions of people, directly or indirectly can affect our lives forever, and that all actions have a consequence. Certainly the COVID pandemic reminds us of the fragility of the human condition and how quickly our lives can change and more importantly highlights what really is important to us all.
The applications for places in the school for 2021 are increasing dramatically, and it certainly supports our mission to become a school of choice. This will no doubt present challenges going forward but we hope to be able to offer a quality affordable education to as many as possible. I remind you that we have created a line of communication for parents directly to me, should you feel the need to communicate important and urgent matters (mecsfeedback@gmail.com)
School Fees 2021
We have given careful thought and consideration into the annual school fee adjustment and the Board has approved a conservative budget that is driven by a 4% increase in fees.
The 2021 Fee structure is as follows:
| Per month | |
| Grade RR | R1354 |
| Grade R | R2287 |
| Grade 1 – 3 | R2756 |
| Grade 4 -7 | R3114 |
| Grade 8-9 | R3552 |
| Grade 10-12 | R4164 |
Foundation Phase News
Our Foundation Phase has become such a happy and delightful place for our young learners. I would ask any parents who might have age appropriate books or donations for the purchase of books to contact Jenny-Lynn at the school.
Staffing
Mr. Schroder has announced his resignation as of the end of term 3. On behalf of the school, I would like wish him well in his future endeavours and extend my thanks to him for his efforts to add value to the school and I hope that he is able to achieve success.
Food for thought
Today I’m going to tell the story of a farmer who used an old horse to till his fields.
One day, the horse escaped into the hills. When the farmer’s neighbours sympathised with the old man over his bad luck, the farmer replied, “Bad luck? Good luck? Who knows?”
A week later, the horse returned with a herd of horses from the hills. This time the neighbours congratulated the farmer on his good luck. His reply was, “Good luck? Bad luck? Who knows?”
Then when the farmer’s son was attempting to tame one of the wild horses, he fell off its back and broke his leg. Everyone thought this was very bad luck. The farmer’s reaction: “Bad luck? Good luck? Who knows?”
Some weeks later, the army marched into the village and conscripted every able-bodied youth they found there. When they saw the farmer’s son with his broken leg, they let him off.
Was that Good luck or Bad luck? Who knows!
Understand that you don’t have all the answers. But here’s what to do when you don’t know…
Remain calm – refuse to become agitated when things seem to fall apart.
Trust your abilities – you have handled crises before, so you have the inner assurance that your abilities will pull you through again.
Take action – avoid becoming paralysed by events that don’t turn out exactly as imagined. Make plans and take specific action to move forward.
Embrace acceptance – accept the idea that in chaos there is order and that sometimes you have to work with what you’ve got, accept what happens, and move on.
Stay true to yourself – never compromise on your integrity. When you put integrity first know that you can keep your self-respect.
Foster agility – respond to change with flexibility and not rigidity. Change and adversity are inevitable; those who are busy worrying about the past or distracted by the present are almost certain to miss out on the future.
When it appears there are more questions than answers, more trouble than solutions, more failures than successes, more bad than good, to make the most of it is to sometimes say, “Who knows!” When everything seems to be bad luck, when not everything has an answer, and not everything can be figured out – it may just be good luck in disguise.
Have a great weekend
Brian
