From the Head of School
Welcome to PMFS, a community of joyful, active learners engaging with the world around us, near and far.A friend of mine recently shared this quote from E.E. Cummings: “We do not believe in ourselves until someone reveals that something deep inside us is valuable, worth listening to, worthy of our trust, sacred to our touch. Once we believe in ourselves we can risk curiosity, wonder, spontaneous delight or any experience that reveals the human spirit.”
I wouldn’t go so far as to say people don’t believe in themselves initially when they come to PMFS, but I do know our school culture of knowing and respecting every person is the basis for students’ ability to risk finding and sharing their true selves, within the Plymouth community and beyond.
Many powerful moments of students growing in wonder and spirit rise up for me when thinking about how our children’s beauty rise up in them, for all the world to see.
I’ve seen it at the Talent Show, when a student sang an original song, sharing her internal vision with a gym full of students, who held the quiet intently for her.
I’ve seen it during Meeting for Worship in the woods on the Primary camping trip, when a student locked eyes on the intricacies of a flower; he felt comfortable in the moment to appreciate the beauty of nature.
I’ve seen it at Graduation, when one of the 2016 graduates shared that she had painted river rocks for her classmates, with a personally chosen wish for each one of them.
I’ve seen it at Strawberry Festival, when an entire school community of students, teachers, parents, grandparents, and alumni formed a circle, joining together in joy and fervent membership in a world that recognizes that love is love is love is love is love.
I’ve seen it at our Martin Luther King Jr. Day of Service and Justice, when Fifth Graders presented to us local social justice organizations that could use our help taking up their responsibility to themselves and their learning, to their classmates and to the greater world we want to see.
Each of these moments—moments when children feel comfortable, supported, and confident enough to share pureness of self—are a glimpse of something so pure and so precious that I can hardly write about it, like when something is so beautiful you can hardly look at it. Sharing these special moments, we can almost imagine they are a dream and will vanish if we look at them head on. But they are real.
So beautiful. So simple. So true.
It is inspiring to come together to help students grow into their own power as leaders for peace, understanding, and the giving and receiving of kindness. Our students understand the importance of their own voice, how to respect the voices and needs of others, and their responsibility to take action for what they believe. This foundation is more important now than ever.
We invite you to learn more about our school and our community. Join us at an upcoming event—whether a Parent Talk or a Nature Play Date—or connect with our Admissions Office for a personal tour. Come see joyful learning in action, and how are students are being the change they want to see in the world.
Warmly,
Sarah Sweeney-Denham
