Scott arrived in New Zealand at the tender age of 4 after his Mother made the decision to relocate as far away from Scotland as possible in order to provide her family with a brighter future. After a visit to her local library, a conversation with the Librarian, and close inspection of a World map the options were narrowed down to Chile or New Zealand. The main factor driving the decision to relocate to New Zealand was that the official language of New Zealand was English & no one in her family spoke Spanish - decision made! Thanks for sharing your story with us Scott.
We then went on to take a closer look at & discuss some personal qualities of a number of influential New Zealand Heroes. We talked about New Zealand legends such as Sir Peter Blake, Sir Edmund Hilary & Kate Sheppard. We discussed what made them iconic NZ heroes, and the children were asked who their heroes were – their heroes included Richie Mccaw, Lionel Messi, Anne Frank, Albert Einstein, and Mum & Dad (I love that one!).
Perry then presented the children with a BIG question. “Is being famous & being a hero mutually exclusive?” The resounding response was NO, and this sparked a really fascinating conversation around what qualities we attach to Heroes. Words such as inspirational, leader, committed, brave, determined were all used to describe our heroes. The children concluded that people can be famous for wrong reasons and just being famous does not always make someone a hero.
As the children were discussing their chosen heroes with Scott I realised that unlike the children, I didn’t have one "Hero" that immediately came to mind - why was that? Upon reflection I realised that I have heroes everywhere – within my family, in my neighborhood, working in our sport’s clubs, schools, business, hospitals, and working within my community. These heroes operate under the radar sacrificing their time & expertise to help others, selflessly going the extra mile to make a difference in the world, overcoming big obstacles, never giving up when to going gets tough, and most importantly being real. They are all heroes to me, and I know a lot of them - they aren't famous, but they are inspirational & amazing to me!
What does the word Hero mean to you? What are your big dreams? Are you ready to make it happen? I know I am! You can find out more about the The Sir Peter Blake Trust - Leadership in Action program here http://www.sirpeterblaketrust.org/
Wishing you all a fun & relaxing school holiday! I look forward to reconnecting again in term 3.
Karin : )