Session 3, Week 3
Gifts, both giving and receiving, are such a fun part of this time of the year. Many heartfelt gifts were exchanged at CHOICE this last week… just not the kind of gifts you might be expecting.
In the Spark Studio charity, compassion, and spreading cheer was a focus this week. We had the opportunity to tie blankets and write notes as gifts for refugees.
But even before the challenge was given there were heroes making pictures and writing notes for others.
Heroes exchange gifts during lunchtime every day. As the daily sharing and bartering of lunch items unfolds it is sweet to watch how willing heroes are to give another hero an opportunity to try new foods or share favorites with one another. On one particular day this week TWO of our heroes accidentally dropped their microwavable Mac and Cheese on the floor. They were crushed! The best part of their lunch was now no longer edible. As guides assured them there were snacks they could choose from, the other heroes piped in immediately: “Oh, I brought a huge slice of pizza. They can have some of my lunch.” Another hero chimed in offering a piece of their lunch. And another and another. Thanks to the heartfelt gifts of their fellow travelers, the first two heroes walked away with much more than a replacement for the lost mac and cheese.
We don’t forget that each smile, invitation to join in the fun, and silly face is a gift in itself.
Nor do we forget the incredible gift that parents are as they take time from their busy schedules to sit down and show interest in their childs’ works. Thank you!
In the Fire Studio Session 3 was short yet impactful. In this final third week, heroes offered gifts to each other–the gifts of justice and respect as they held each other accountable and helped each other focus during the new quiet hour of core skills, the gift of mercy as they reconsidered the grit challenge requirements for those impacted by weather and traffic in the morning, and the gifts of friendship and cooperation as they played and worked together in the studio, for the exhibition, through end of session reflections, and even on the ice rink.
After exploring the problem of boredom in refugee camps, the heroes final Quest challenge was to create games from recycled materials. As they searched for the recycled pieces they needed, it was beautiful to see how quick they were to give the gift of time as they helped one another find needed materials, and to actually give up their own gathered materials for one another. They enjoyed playing each other’s games, asking about the rules, and being engaged in one another’s creation. They daily give the gift of friendship.
Exhibitions always take the gift of patience. Working with two studios to produce an exhibition took extra patience. There were often heroes frustrated by another hero’s actions, and yet they choose to extend mercy and patience and continued their preparations for a fantastic exhibition.
The whole school also received a valuable gift of learning from Abdul, a refugee from Afghanistan who is now working at the state refugee center which we toured. He shared some of his life experiences including being born and raised in Taliban warzones, secretly learning English, risking his life to work as an interpreter and cultural guide for American soldiers, and being forced to leave his home to save his young family. He spoke of the life-changing gift that is education, and the positive impacts of education he has witnessed in his own family and in his home country of Afghanistan.
In the Middle School this last week was extremely full as the heroes sprinted to finish up their Session goals, pull together the Exhibition, reflect on the session and celebrate Christmas together. Despite their business, they offered one another so many gifts.
During Core Skills as they each scrambled to finish their own goals, heroes were willing to give the gift of time to those who needed editing from their Writing Squad, badge approval from their Running Partners, or simply help on challenging schoolwork.
During birthday celebrations heroes share a piece of themselves as they share pictures from each year of their life and then read a favorite childhood book. Perhaps the greatest birthday gift exchange takes place as heroes take a moment to write kind notes to the birthday hero.
Watching the physical gifts they gave each other was both touching and hilarious. Most heroes had taken the time to secretly investigate the interests of their Secret Santa hero and had given extremely thoughtful gifts (a puzzle for a puzzle lover, a year supply of mints for the hero who brings mints to school each day, etc). And then their white elephant gifts were just as entertaining as one would hope! They were quick to share the gift of laughter (as they always are). As the heroes opened their gifts, they were quick to share the gift of gratitude with one another.
Throughout this session, perhaps the sweetest gifts given by the Middle School heroes were the patience, help, care and friendship they extended to the younger Fire Studio heroes. They took time daily to explain instructions, move at a slower pace than they normally would, give piggyback rides, extend patience for different maturity levels, and share friendship. On Thursday Fire Studio heroes were quick to express how much they would miss doing quest with the Middle Schoolers. These pictures only portray the gifts given Thursday while ice skating: tying skates, helping to learn to skate, and buying treats with their own money for their “family.”
The heroes at CHOICE are young people who know how to both give and receive. It is truly a gift for us as guides to be surrounded by heroes who are willing to give of themselves so freely. Thank you for sharing the gift of your children with us every day! May we all learn to give and receive as they do!