STUDENTS of St Joan of Arc Secondary School had a deeper grasp of the meaning of true success when their guest, the Reverend Sister Marie Remedios, spoke on the topic at the school's speech day recently. One could still be a winner even when one had failed because achievement was not the most important thing, Sister Remedios said. 'Failures may serve to make us win if we know how to accept them. The most important thing is to learn to accept persons and things, to learn not to hide behind a mask, to learn self-discipline and to maintain a basic self-confidence even when we come across setbacks.' The secret of true success, she said, was 'to be free to be one's true self'. Many young people tended to believe 'being oneself' meant doing what one felt or wanted to do, she said. Sister Remedios said this was not the correct attitude because our convenience or well-being might clash with those of others. 'Being ourselves means discovering what is best in us and working hard to make it the dominant aspect of our life, always keeping an eye open on the needs of our fellowmen who live and work with us.' Sister Remedios capped her message with the Christian adage - 'Never do to others what you would not like others to do unto you' - the way to become a true winner in life. Principal Veronica Ma Kit-ching emphasised that the school must respond to the environment and be able to incorporate new concepts in education into current perspectives. 'We would like to develop a 'collaborative culture' in the school, with the participation of teachers, parents and past students in school policy-making,' she said. One of the outstanding awards was presented to students who won the Hong Kong Red Cross Youth and Welfare Department Best Service Project Scheme. The project's section leaders, sixth formers Alan Lo Ka-leung (service) and Benjamin Lai Chi-kit (training), said it was the first time the school had taken part in such projects. Last July and August, they led their schoolmates to work with Diocesan Girls' School students to teach a group of seven-to 11-year-olds how to serve the elderly. 'It took us nearly a whole year to plan the project and, in turn, we had a valuable communication experience with an age group we seldom deal,' Alan said. It was also an opportunity for leadership. 'We learned obedience when we first joined the Red Cross. Now that I'm a committee member, I've learned to discipline others,' Benjamin said.
