Heart to Heart: The Stuart Blog

  • On Abigail Borah's ('09) UN Experience

    Guest Blog, by Margaret Plantes
    Posted January 7, 2012

    In a recent letter to Anne Pierpont Margaret Plantes writes:

    The dust seems to have settled with Abigail in South Africa for the UN Climate Conference. I am proud of her courage and boldness, yet as you can surely understand, a bit concerned she doesn't get in over her head. Now that I know what it means to "go viral," my life feels changed. To see your child's name pop on on page after page of Google Search and Twitter--I don't even go on Facebook!--is a true wake up call. And, not surprisingly, Stuart's home page did a lovely job in showing her efforts.

    Abigail keeps being elected and selected at Middlebury and beyond, and I see this as truly rooted in her Stuart preparation in the classroom, on the field, and on the stage. I reflect often on how Stuart teaches girls how to be good friends and followers, first and foremost, in their formation as leaders. That a preschooler can watch a fifth grader or an Upper School senior on stage or on television...well, it just gives her a chance to see what is possible for her, if she just keeps following along the path ahead. Sadly, I think today's parents do not understand this. Often they need to have their children be instant leaders or the #1 consistently. And that is not how to best form a leader or good solid character. I was so fortunate that women like you, Sr. de la, Ronnie Williams, Patty Schorr , Jan Baldwin and Anne Soos, could be there to teach me this--then prove it, by providing my girls with the means to succeed.

    When I listened to my daughter's voice in an NPR interview after her "intervention," it was not the voice of the girl who started at Stuart, but the voice of the girl who graduated and was launched from there. She was "well begun," as St. Madeleine Sophie would have wanted. http://stream.loe.org/audio/111209/111209borah.mp3 She sounds so strong, poised and determined to make a difference.

    - How has Stuart helped to launch you or your daughter?

  • Where will you spend Christmas?

    by Dr. Patty Fagin, Head of School
    Posted December 8, 2011

    Where will you spend Christmas? As December is upon us, it’s a question I hear often as I greet families in the mornings or at the end of the school day. At Stuart the responses range from the exotic to the familiar – Paris, California, Virginia, New York, Princeton. It was that question that awakened me this morning. Physically, I know where I will be spending Christmas. I will join my siblings and my husband’s in St. Louis, shuttling between his family and mine, trying to squeeze in as much togetherness a few days of visiting will allow. So it wasn’t a sense of geographic confusion that roused me. Perhaps, like many of you, the nagging question was more metaphysical in nature.

    Though Christmas is only weeks away, my home is undecorated, my gifts un-purchased, my Christmas cards unwritten and I have a choice to make. Where will I spend Christmas? In the waking moments of this early December morning, I know the answer is really a prayer.

    Dear Lord, don’t let the worry of a Christmas Perfect rob me of the peace and joy of Christmas Present. Let me revel in the spirit of Christmas. If my home is less an idyllic holiday tableau and my soul is more refreshed by daily reflections on Your goodness, I will be richly blessed. If I spend less time selecting the ‘perfect’ gifts and more time sharing the ‘perfect’ messages of love for family and friends, I will be richly blessed. If my Christmas cards become New Year’s greetings and I gain time for more meaningful moments with others, I will be richly blessed.

    Where will you spend Christmas? As we make our Advent journey to Christmas, I pray we will spend our Christmas in the places that matter most.

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Welcome to the Stuart Blog where we invite you to share ideas about faith, education and community, all grounded here at Stuart in the Sacred Heart Goals and Criteria and our rich Stuart history and traditions.

"When I listened to my daughter's voice in an NPR interview after her "intervention," it was not the voice of the girl who started at Stuart, but the voice of the girl who graduated and was launched from there. She was "well begun," as St. Madeleine Sophie would have wanted."