“At Campbell Hall, we love it all!!”
I led this cheer during spirit rallies prior to Homecoming last month, followed by cheers for not just every fall sport but every arts program as well. It was oddly liberating to watch and hear hundreds of teenagers cheering wildly for photographers and poets as well as football and tennis teams. School spirit, it turns out, is not a zero sum game, with less available for academics and the arts if students support athletics. As the lyrics of one of the songs we sing in elementary chapel put it:
Love is something if you give it away
You end up having more
It's just like a magic penny
Hold it tight & you won't have any
Lend it, spend it & you'll have so many
They'll roll all over the floor!
This is a truth I see every week as I am lucky to share so many aspects of school life. I teach a junior/senior philosophy elective, and the students positively buzz with curiosity and a genuine sense of respect as they discuss each text with their peers. I pass by a jazz/rock combo class where students jam delightedly with a parent who is a professional musician. At the National Letter of Intent Signing Ceremony, every one of our four Division I recruits was praised for being a supportive friend and team-mate as well as a great athlete. Students stop in the third floor hallway to look appreciatively and pensively at the photographs on display.
Our little community here is what Emerson called a State based on love rather than fear. In the fear-based community, if one student succeeds, another must fail. In the abundance of the community based on love, every success breeds another, and every failure is a time for compassion and learning.
We’re not perfect, of course, but this sure is a fun place to manage by walking around!
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