Dear Parents and Guardians,

Last night was our Sophomore Serviam ceremony. This is one of my favorite traditions at Ursuline! Too often in the high school years, sophomores are not focused on and celebrated.

Freshmen are new and welcomed as the youngest in the school.

Juniors are having their epic year of growth and development and transforming into upper school level leaders, and it is the year when they receive their Ursuline ring.

Seniors are in their final year, and we look for every way possible to let them know how much we love them before we send them off with the most beautiful graduation ceremony I have ever seen!

Sophomores are invited to focus their year on serving and to really think about what it means to serve.

Last night at the ceremony, Fr. Alfonse offered a beautiful homily that I hope the girls absorbed, and it was such an important message that I want to make sure more of you hear it.

As Fr. Alfonse does, he asked girls who had bravely decided to join him on stage what they thought the secret to happiness might be? They gave some lovely answers! He proceeded to share what he believes to be the way to be happy: a three-part approach to acting and living in the world:

• First, and most important, let God in. Father suggested that when we see that we are struggling or challenged, we can pray: Be with me, Lord. If you can bring God with you through the challenge you are facing, you will automatically be stronger and more ready.
• Next, embrace the challenge! Acknowledge that it is there, and that you are in it. It will not go away, and by embracing the challenge, you open yourself to Grace.
• Finally, look for the reason – look for the reward. The reward is there, even if it is sometimes hard to see at first.

Fr. Alfonse offered an example of how to apply this way of being. He asked our brave girls on the stage what they would say to somebody who said, “I don’t like you! In fact, I hate you!” Wow. Tough words, and our girls did beautifully in trying to navigate through that question. Applying the three steps that he described to such a moment did offer a better path than perhaps the more natural one to fight back or lash out.

Instead, imagine this scenario: ask God to be with you if someone says something or does something that hurts or that makes you sad. And then, embrace the challenge! Can you imagine the world where in the face of hurt, we could respond: “I’m sorry to hear that. I’m here for you, and I’m ready to be your friend, and I do not hate you. In fact, I like you!” Is it too hard to imagine? I do realize it’s a stretch, but the stretch is worth it when you consider the third part of Father‘s advice. Look for the reward; look for the reason.

As an adult with several decades under my belt, I have the gift of perspective to see why things unfolded in my life the way that they did. Looking back, it is easier to see the plan. When you are in the middle of a painful moment, the reason can be hard to find, but the reward is sometimes a little easier to see. I don’t know of anyone who doesn’t immediately feel a sense of rightness in themselves when they choose to be kind. When they choose to step away from a conflict rather than inflame it. To love one another is a great and tremendous call. It is, perhaps, the hardest at times. And yet, when our girls truly see one another through that lens of love, and when they choose kindness or opt to step away, rather than to engage with a hurt for a hurt, I can see their growth. I can see glimmers of the adults they will become, and it is beautiful.

I pray every day for their safety and for their happiness. I am going to add to my daily prayers that they can find a way to bring God with them in all situations, to embrace their challenges, and to look for the reward.

All the best,

Andrea Shurley

Dr. Andrea Shurley
Principal