PHS Friday Letter

John had an active sing-a-long throughout much of the performance. Before playing The Kindergarten Wall, a perennial PHS favorite and one that Carey sang with students while she was Director, John said this would be the first time he would actually be singing the song, as Carey had always led the performance and he did back-up. When he started playing and the audience was just as loud, he paused and joked that he knew his place and he would sing back-up for the audience.

His songs remind us that many of life’s most important lessons are learned as children and forgotten as adults:

Of all you learn here remember this the best:
Don't hurt each other and clean up your mess
Take a nap everyday, wash before you eat
Hold hands, stick together, look before you cross the street
And remember the seed in the little paper cup:
First the root goes down and then the plant grows up!

Another song he played was The Great Storm is Over because Carey had asked him to sing it before she passed away. He pointed out that when a community loses someone, “it throws everyone for a loop … Grief has to have a place … long enough to remind us that its mother is love.” Although he misses Carey, he realizes that she is still with us in the songs, art, conversations and laughter shared.

John spends much of the year on the road performing concerts, often as a fundraiser for schools. Asked why he adds to an already full schedule to raise money for schools, John replied that “being surrounded by this kind of hope” is what keeps him going. “Education is integral to all of our survival, so I help out where I can.” As John pointed out, culture and change go hand-in-hand because the decisions you make, and who you are, have as much to do with how you feel as with what you know.

Performing “children’s songs” and the simple but powerful lessons they teach was a good reminder that kids have much to teach us adults. What kids learn—in school, in their interactions with family and friends, in what they observe others doing—conveys messages about what is important, how to treat one another, and how to interact with the world.

We are grateful to John for his generous donation of time and talent, and we hope to be able to continue to enjoy his performances annually. Such gatherings are wonderful reminders of how great it is to be a part of a community of parents, friends, students and teachers who are committed to PHS. Watching John’s performance—how he brought community members together, talked about [our] shared grief, and encouraged us to feel hope for positive change and be a part of it–the image of a tree came to mind.

PHS is like a tree—a symbol of knowledge, embodying the deep roots of our history and the many different branches of school life. As a community, we too need nourishment whether it is through the commitment of teachers in the classroom, parents volunteering their time, or gifts given to the school. Indeed, just as a tree relies on sunshine and water, we at PHS rely on all of the ways people give to the school, to enable it thrive.

We are proud of the support our community has shown for this year’s Annual Fund, but need a little more water and sunshine to reach our goal of 100% participation by the end of February. Please help us to make it happen!

AF Update:
K: 69%
1: 75%
2: 79%
3: 89%
4: 71%
5: 93%
6: 65%
7: 73%
8: 52%

Skye DeLano
Development Director