High 5 – 22 April 2016 by Ms Lee Pei Ying

Good morning Mdm Tan, Mr Lee, colleagues and all Gessians.

Last Tuesday, our school had our annual Student Leaders’ Appointment Ceremony where about one hundred student leaders were appointed into office.

With that, do allow me to share with you a short story on leadership. Here’s how the story goes.
One windy day, in March, the Mayor of the town decided to take a stroll across the park. He ran into a small boy, who was flying the biggest and most beautiful kite he had ever seen.

It soared high and gently across the sky that the Mayor was sure it could be seen in the next city. This little town didn’t have very many things that were spectacular, so the Mayor decided to award a “key to the city” to the one responsible for such a beautiful thing.

“Who is responsible for flying this kite?” the Mayor asked.

“I am,” said the little boy holding with all his might to the beautiful big kite. He said, “I made this huge kite myself, with my own hands. I painted all of the colourful pictures on it, and I fly it!”

“I am,” said the wind. “It is my breeze that keeps it in the air flying so big and beautiful. Unless I blow on it, it will not fly at all. I fly it!”

“Not so,” claimed the kite’s tail. “I make it sail and give it stability against the wind’s blowing gusts. Without me, the kite would spin out of control, and not even the boy could save it from crashing to the earth. I fly the kite!”

So, who flies the kite?

They all do, don’t they?
~~~

From this story, it tells us that every one of us has a part to play to make something successful. No man is an island, and no one can simply succeed by working alone. Be it as a class, a CCA or a school, we would need to cooperate with each other to bring out the best in each of us.

As the saying by John Maxwell goes, “It’s not the position that makes the leader; it’s the leader that makes the position.” Holding on to a title would not naturally make us a leader. Instead, it is what one does to make others respect and look up to him or her as a leader.

In the day-to-day hustle and bustle of work, it is easy to forget that everyone flies the kite. Without the team, the leader would never be successful. Without a good leader, the team would fail. Both need each other. And each person on the team needs one another as well. They all fly it!

Let’s not forget that we can all be leaders in our own ways, and it lies in our choice. Before we can talk about leading others, let’s all start with leading ourselves and strive for accuracy in all that we do!

So what do we mean by leading ourselves and striving for accuracy?

It means to do the best that you can be and not settling with the average. Finish something and be proud of what you have done.

At the end of the day, be it as adults or students, we would all have our parts to play.

On that note, I am sure that we are all affected by the recent changes in our weather conditions, as a result of global warming. In fact, in December last year, the governments of over 190 nations have gathered in Paris to discuss a possible new global agreement on climate change. This agreement is aimed at reducing global greenhouse gas emissions and thus avoiding the threat of dangerous climate change.

If the emission of greenhouse gases, like carbon dioxide, continues to increase, we would soon pass the threshold level, causing global warming to become catastrophic and irreversible. Small changes in temperature could have a large impact on both the Earth and us.

As such, we have the responsibility to work together to solve this global issue, before it is too late. Consider how simple actions like turning off the appliances when not in use or using public transport could help to reduce our individual carbon dioxide emission. Every action counts, lead yourself to do the right thing.

So, do take some time to think through, what kite are you flying and what kite do you want to fly?

Thank you and onward!