Today I had the pleasure of working with Central Peel Secondary students talking about the idea of #DigitalLeadership. Although I am always honoured to speak to students, today has been a little rough since it is exactly one year since my dad passed away.
As I was speaking about the positive impact that students can make and sharing about how so many people from around the world consoled me during a difficult time, I started to tear up in front of the students. During a video shared in my presentation, I saw a tweet from a student:
@gcouros thank you so much for coming to talk with is today on such a hard day for you. Much love #centralpeel
— Kourageous Kaitlin⚓ (@kati97_) March 26, 2014
I responded and thanked her and the school for having me, and as the video ended, I pointed out the small act of kindness that made me feel very welcome at a point that I was very vulnerable. As I asked where “Kaitlin” was, she put up her hand and said, “Can I give you a hug?”, which, of course, I accepted. As she gave me a hug in front of the whole auditorium, the students applauded loudly for her act of kindness which, in my mind, was definitely deserved.
It brought me to tears and it reminded me how inspiring our students are and how they always seem to go WAY above our expectations whenever we give them the chance.
Looking to favourite the tweets shared by Kaitlin, I noticed one of her tweets before the assembly began:
Time to be told what not to do on the internet in the assembly… Pft we know these things already
— Kourageous Kaitlin⚓ (@kati97_) March 26, 2014
Can you blame her?
So much time is spent with students telling them what they “can’t” do as opposed to showing them the endless possibilities there is to make a difference in this world.
If we really believe that our students are “the future”, we need to help keep them safe, but we should also focus on the fact that they have the world at their fingertips and they can do something powerful. I know that one student with a simple tweet and act of kindness made a difference for me on a very tough day that and it will probably stick with me for the rest of my life. Hopefully we can focus on empowering our kids, as opposed to telling them only what they “can’t” do.
