Reflection Days offer our girls the opportunity to be removed from their usual daily routines and study so as to be able to have a change of pace and to slow down. The Year 9 Reflection Day offered the girls the chance to reflect upon and contemplate what it means to “Let Your Light Shine”—the theme of the day.

Through a variety of activities, the Year 9 girls explored topics and issues such as humility, true beauty, giftedness, and judgementalism. As ways of delving into these topics and issues, Year 9 experienced a mindfulness exercise, exploration of Scripture passages, a reconciliation ritual, and the creation of a Year 9 “Chain of Giftedness”, as well as prayer to start and end the day. The final part of the day was devoted to introducing Year 9 to Community Service and prepping them for the St Patrick’s College Year 10 Community Service Program which they will undertake next year.

Year 9 were also fortunate to have had ten Year 12 girls assisting with the facilitation of the day’s activities and small group discussions. The Year 12 girls who volunteered their time away from lessons were: Monet C, Sophia S, Jemma W, Lucy G, Krisa K, Amelia B, Laura R, Grace G, Monique G, Liana Y. They all fulfilled their role as facilitators with confidence and maturity, having displayed excellent leadership.

Year 9 student, Chloe R, offered these comments about the day:
“I really enjoyed the reflection day, especially for the way everyone was really respectful when people went up and spoke at the lectern. The topics discussed were different compared to what we usually learn about in the classroom and it was a way to see how we were going in our years at St Pat’s. It was an eye-opening discussion to see how much we really notice if we cared to look closely at ourselves and others. I liked how everything was put together, the small groups were random but we could still connect with each other. The reflection time during the reconciliation ritual was really well done.”

Year 9 is to be commended for the way they entered into what was their very first reflection day at St Pat’s. They were respectful listeners, engaged, and great contributors to the meaningful discussions that were had.

Angelo Gattone - Mission Coordinator