The Resilience Project

If you haven't had the chance yet, I highly recommend either purchasing or listening to Hugh van Cuylenburg's story in his book on the Resilience Project. He talks about what we can all do to be more resilient and makes it simple, and achievable for all. 

At St Francis next year we are very lucky to be taking part in the Resilience Project Education program, this has come about as we are seeing increasing numbers of students dealing with anxiety and other mental health issues and currently, in New Zealand, Mental Health Agencies do not have the capacity to deal with the increasing numbers of students needing support and our students and families are facing huge wait times to get the support they need.

This programme also supports the Special Character of our school and can be integrated extremely well into Religious Education lessons. We are all very excited about this great opportunity and I am looking forward to being a part of the team who supports this program being embedded into our everyday life at St Francis. 

During our "COVID lockdown" this year I listened to Hugh tell his story in his first book. He is a great storyteller and told of his adventures and life experiences throughout his life so far. He talks about 3 easy steps to becoming more resilient. He uses the acronym GEM, which stands for Gratitude, Empathy and Mindfulness. He says if we practice these 3 steps, our mental status will improve and we all will be better for it. 

Hugh then came to New Zealand to speak in Auckland and Christchurch. I was very lucky to get tickets to see hear in speak in Christchurch. He isn't just a great storyteller in his books, he is such an awesome guy in person. He brings humour, interest and love to his job and can not believe why people buy tickets to listen to him. Hearing him speak about his different life experiences, and then talk about how he practices GEM was very interesting, I enjoyed hearing him talk about how sometimes it just doesn't happen and other days it does. I think this is the best message to hear as we take part in this new program. If one day doesn't go to plan, then try again the next. 

I have downloaded the Resilience Project app, been listening to to the the podcasts (The Imperfects), and currently started to read Hugh's 2nd book. I am looking forward to this opportunity next year, not only for the children but also for each member of staff. Let's all give GEM a go! 

Attached to this post is the link to the Resilience Project website.