The premise for each show follows a similar format - taking something old, renovate, rebuild, remodel, reveal then rejoice in the fruits of their labor. I love the idea of taking something that is considered broken, old, run-down, rejected and aesthetically 'ugly' and turning it into something beautiful. Even more so the concept of 'renovating' and 'rebuilding' is what I love. The whole process - from the planning to the execution of the vision and ideas - this is something that I enjoy watching. 'Renovations' is a concept that I believe is something that holds a significant, deeper meaning to me. We are all a work in progress and we all have areas in our lives that we need to make improvements on. We are all grounded in something whether our foundation is solid in our faith or cultural values. I shared this reflection with my Year 11 cohort in our most recent assembly.
RENOVATION:
the act or process of repairing and improving something, especially a building
Hometown Demolition Contractors (www.hometowndemolitioncontractors.com) provide 10 key steps to help one organize their home renovation in the hope that it will bring structure and sanity to anyone pursuing this. The 10 key steps are as follows:
Planning: 1 month
Demolition: 2 weeks
HVAC, Electrical & Plumbing: 5 days
Framing & Drywall: 10 days
Painting: 1 week
Cabinets & Fixtures: 1 week
Doors & Windows: 5 days
Clean House & Air Vents: 1 day
Flooring: 1 week
Trim and Finish Work: 1 week
It is safe to say that these steps are very specific and necessary to the task. Venturing off into a shortcut may bring you closer to the finish line, but the finer details (finishes, trim work) may be at risk due to the lack of attention because one is so focused on just getting the job done. I can attest to this. When my wife and I bought our home the first thing we wanted to do was to repaint the entire living area (kitchen, dinning area and lounge). The first coat was fine, but we learnt very early on that it needed about 3 coats to fully wash out the hideous 'off white almost avocado' green. We were so determined to get the job done that we spent most of the night into the early hours of the morning doing the first coat. In less than 2 days the job was done. Do we regret it? Nope. Was it hard work? For us, yes. Did we want to shortcut? YES! But we knew that this would only damage the visual that we wanted.
Renovating - whether it is a huge remodel or a modest repaint job - requires planning and vision. It requires, whoever is leading the job - to see a finish line and think about what steps are needed to get to the end. It requires one to look at the areas that need improvement and specify what is needed to make the necessary changes. Renovation gives one an opportunity to visualize a goal. Renovation also celebrates the bones of a building, the heritage of a building and encourages people to remodel in a way the honors the history.
I felt compelled to share this reflection with my Year 11s. If the notion 'throwing a curve ball' was ever a year - it would be 2020. For my cohort, the goal has always been to work towards achieving NCEA Level 1. The journey in getting there is not always the smoothest and I have found that for some of them, they have reached a point where the pressure is too much, they have had enough or they just want a break from it all. My hope in sharing this reflection was to encourage them - regardless of what their 'building' looks like (their learning journey, their personal journey) that we have an opportunity to rebuild everyday. We have an opportunity to make improvements. Such a task requires attention to detail, it requires a sense of visualizing a finish line and a degree of planning and preparation. Execution is only successful if the planning is thorough and specific. I hope that my Year 11s can understand that they have the potential to rebuild in area of their lives, some could easily see this through in their own time. Others will need the support of others to help them find their feet. Regardless the opportunity to renovate - physically and/or internally - is available. It is up to the individual to make that choice.
Jeremiah 29:5
Build houses and settle down. Plant gardens and eat what you grow in them
Connecting a message or point of view to a text is something that I encourage my learners to do in their writing. It validates the argument and shows that the writer is able to make connections with their point of view against other perspectives. I believe that when I have an opportunity to speak to my year group, it is important that I am being as honest as I can to myself. Otherwise my message will not come across genuine and rather forced or empty. For me, I use my platform to share verses that I feel are appropriate to whatever the reflection is. I shared this verse from Jeremiah to bring home my message, when I presented to my Year 11s. The message for me from this message is that we are all in a process of building, we are as I said earlier, a work in progress. What we believe, what we say, what we desire and aspire to be, what we work towards, what we value, who we value, love, honor, respect - is all part of the 'building' that we are creating in our lives (build houses and settle down). If we do this in love and in honor of our values, culture and faith, we can enjoy the blessings (eat what you grow in them).
I look forward to renovating more with my students and team.
No comments:
Post a Comment