About
Reflecting on Shoelaces
I began Saturday's chapel service by inviting Ms. Daniell to play a tune on the organ which was recognisable to some.
It was the theme tune of Chariots of Fire – a film which all of you should watch.
On Tuesday, we all sung the line from a rousing and heart-stirring hymn which inspired the title of the film:
"Bring me my chariot of fire!"
This Oscar-winning film tells the true story of two athletes in the 1924 Olympics: Eric Liddell, a devout Scottish Christian, born to missionary parents in China, who runs for the glory of God, and Harold Abrahams, an English Jew who runs to overcome prejudice.
I would like to focus on the story of Eric Liddell for a moment. Liddell discovers the Olympic heats for his 100-metre and relay races will take place on a Sunday – and decides, in the face of national athletic pride, not to race because his Christian convictions prevent him from running on the Sabbath. One of his teammates, having already won a medal in the 400 metres hurdles, in an act of solidarity, offers his starting place in the 400 metres to Liddell.
Liddell (with his distinctive and unorthodox running style) wins gold at this longer sprint distance, defeating the American favourites along the way.
The actor who played the role of Eric Liddell was Ian Charleson.
I was very fortunate to have an inspirational English Literature teacher at school – in fact, he inspired me to become an English teacher. In my Grade 11 and 12 years, he took our class to watch two productions of Shakespeare’s ‘Hamlet’ at the National Theatre in London – one in English and the other in Romanian (that’s another story).
The English production of Hamlet was played by Ian Charleson, the same actor who played the runner Eric Liddell.
Hamlet is a stage role that many actors dream of.
The Shakespearean actor Ian McKellan (whom you might know as Gandalf from ‘Lord of the Rings’) said that Charleson ‘played Hamlet so well it was as if he had rehearsed the role all his life’.
A few months later in January 1990, I remember clearly that I was at a party (yes, I once attended a party) in London, and in the morning a special BBC news items caught my attention:
Ian Charleson had died – of AIDS, eight weeks after I had seen him at the National Theatre.
He had chosen to play a season as Hamlet, while seriously ill from AIDS, in a gruelling four-and-a-half-hour daily production.
Charleson requested that it be announced posthumously that he had died of AIDS, in order to publicise the condition. This unusual decision by a major internationally known actor – the first show-business death in the UK openly attributed to complications from AIDS – made a significant contribution to promoting awareness of HIV and AIDS and acceptance of AIDS patients.
It was a privilege to have watched him playing Hamlet in the last months of his life.
You are, no doubt, wondering which way I am going in this reflection…
The 1st of December is World AIDS Day. It is an opportunity for people worldwide to unite in the fight against HIV, to show support for people living with HIV, to commemorate those who have died from an AIDS-related illness, and to honour the people who, over decades and all around the world, have fought for the rights of people living with HIV/AIDS and pushed for education, compassion, and care.
The runner Eric Liddell and the courage of his convictions have been immortalized in the film Chariots of Fire, and the actor Ian Charleson caught national attention with his courage in revealing the cause of his death.
Sport has the power to change the world. We have seen it again and again – from Mandela and the Rugby World Cup in 1995 to the refugee team of male and female athletes at the last two Olympics – symbols of hope and the unifying power of sport.
We saw it again last weekend.
For those following the rugby news, you may well have read about the recent homophobic attack on Gareth Thomas, former Wales international and British and Irish Lion, in a pub in Cardiff, Wales.
In 2009, Thomas’ public announcement that he was gay made him the first openly homosexual male professional rugby union player.
The rugby community’s response to the attack two weeks’ ago was swift, courageous and emphatic. The Welsh, the All Blacks, the French and other teams on international duty last weekend chose to wear Rainbow Laces in their boots in solidarity with the former player and to join the stand against homophobia, discriminative language, and hate-crimes.
The Welsh Women’s side played last Saturday morning against the Canadian women with all the Welsh players choosing to wear rainbow laces.
Ms. Russell, a member of our staff, was captaining Canada that day.
She wrote me an email whilst on tour:
‘One of my favourite things about rugby is the community you gain through the sport and how accepting it is to be whoever you are.’
The highlight of my Parent Open House was meeting a mother and son on Saturday morning in the Guidance Office who told the story of the rainbow laces. Towards the end of our conversation, the student said that it was his intention to invite each player of the boys’ and girls’ 1st XVs and their coaches to wear rainbow laces in their respective opening matches of next season – both to express support for our LGBTQ group here on campus and to show our wider community that Shawnigan stands for open-mindedness and inclusion.
We come back to what, at the start of term, I suggested defines Shawnigan: ‘Conversation, Compassion and Community’.
Thank you Ciaran of Londale’s for taking this initiative to our rugby community next term.
As a side note, the 16-year-old boy arrested for the attack in Cardiff will not face criminal charges but will enter a restorative justice program, following a special request by Gareth Thomas.
This morning’s address is about a runner, an actor and today’s worldwide rugby community who all had the courage to make a stand.
Their actions have heralded new thinking and new beginnings.
I’d like to give the last word of this address to Nelson Mandela, whose words also live in the opening pages of your gold books:
‘Sport has the power to change the world. It has the power to inspire, it has the power to unite people in a way that little else does. It speaks to youth in a language they understand. Sport can create hope, where once there was only despair. It is more powerful than governments in breaking down racial barriers. It laughs in the face of all types of discrimination.’
I invite you, as students and staff of Shawnigan, to reflect on this message – and to celebrate rather than isolate difference.
An advent for things to come.
Richard D A Lamont
Headmaster
1st December 2018
We acknowledge with respect the Coast Salish Peoples on whose traditional lands and waterways we live, learn and play. We are grateful for the opportunity to share in this beautiful region, and we aspire to healthy and respectful relationships with those who have lived on and cared for these lands for millennia.
Shawnigan Lake School is an independent co-educational boarding school for ages 13 –18 on Canada’s beautiful West Coast. Our diverse, interdisciplinary and innovative programming helps shape the next generation of global leaders.
