#slice2013 14 of 31

My principal who has been the principal at my high school for as long as I can remember is retiring at the end of this year. I wish that he could have stayed until the end of my senior year because he is an amazing person, but I guess he figured that he had to pick sometime because he couldn't be there for everyone's senior year and this was the year he picked.

Dr. Breslin sent out a letter to all the parents of all the students at my high school the other night and my mom had all of us read it, including my three younger sisters, my grandparents and my dog since he happened to be sitting right there.

I am extremely thankful that she made me read it. The letter changed the way I view a lot of things that you learn in high school. For a long time I was under the unhappy impression that you spend your entire life preparing for something else. When you're a baby, your parents are preparing you for school. Elementary school prepares you for middle school, middle school prepares you for high school, high school prepares you for college, college prepares you for a job, your job prepares you for retirement and then when you're retired you are subconsciously preparing yourself for death. Dr. Breslin, however, reminded me that this thought process is only the most fundamental stage of preparation. There are so many other valuable things in life to prepare for that are worth your time in the best way possible. Dr. Breslin wrote, "...if we are not careful, school can become a place to accumulate things, such as good grades and an impressive resume, more than a place to learn how to live one's life in a kind, ethical, responsible manner." I do not think that anyone could better say the true meaning of school.

Dr. Breslin also made sure to comment on the famous quote "Whoever dies with the most toys wins," to point out that sometimes our society incorrectly judges people on what successes they have gained and "what they accumulate in life than we do the meaning of that person's life."At first I did not understand what he meant by this. However, after thinking about it for a while I think I understand. To find meaning and to have emotion attached to what you love is one of the most important things you can learn or accumulate. In other words, having passion in what you do is the most important thing to remember in order to live a happy, successful life. To be able to die and say that you lived with passion is to be able to say that your life was successful.

Thank you Dr. Breslin for sharing your wisdom with us all. You will be greatly missed.