Lessons from “A Christmas Carol”

I happened to watch part of the musical version of “A Christmas Carol” this week and was struck by its relevance to both contemporary life in 2009 and to the future of our students in USD 373, in Kansas and in the United States.

The timeless adage is that it is never too late to have one’s eyes opened to generosity and charity toward others; that we never know the whole story of others’ lives, or for that matter, what they may really think of us. To point: Actions really do speak louder than words!

We are in the midst of a bleak mid winter, to quote the seasonal song. We need to, first of all, care about and support one another as never before. Some of our students are dealing with situations we can only imagine. We are their “light” in otherwise dark times. Some of our staff are facing bleak times as well; we need to keep them constantly in our thoughts and again, support them in any way we can.

Finally, we need to continue to try to “open the eyes” of those who appear to think that additional reductions in our already precarious budgets are the only way to get Kansas to fiscal solvency again. The time for their rhetoric is past. We need bold, decisive action by our state leaders, our Governor, and our legislators when they return to Topeka on January 11. We need to turn out in mass next Monday at the school board meeting to hear what our senator and representatives have to say about the future of our state……………our greatest fear should be that, when we are transported by the Ghost of Christmas Future, we find our state in a grave in a cemetery with no one to mourn.

We will continue to provide you with periodic updates and plan to visit every building and department in the ensuing weeks to hear additional budget input and to answer additional questions. In the meantime, let’s open our eyes to the beauty and joy of this amazing season and to the opportunities it affords us to brighten the lives of others, which in turn, will brighten our own lives.