From Mr. Lagarde to Our Students: Let Purpose and Practice Be Your Guide

9/5/2017

Excerpted from Mr. Lagarde's 2017 Convocation remarks to the Severn School student body

There are many parts of our mission that make Severn distinct – character, conduct, scholarship, leadership, service, achievement, and being known and valued. As I welcome you to this new school year however, I’d like to focus on a three-word phrase in our mission that is less about a characteristic and more about how to live your life. The three words — a lasting desire. How does one develop a lasting desire? A desire so strong and deep that it endures through even the most difficult times? The secret: purpose and practice.

Pursue Your Purpose, Passion Will Follow

My guess is that nearly every one of you has heard the following advice: “You need to find your passion and then go after it.” This is not awful advice, but my guess is that it frustrates many of you because you are still young and your life experiences are simply not vast enough to know what your passions are yet. So as you experience more — in Lower, Middle, Upper School and beyond — my hope for you is that you find something that sparks your interest in a way nothing else ever has. My advice to you is to make sure that what you pursue has purpose, not just passion.

Purpose Builds Community

Passions are about you — your wants, your desires, and your goals. But purpose holds both meaning to you and importance to the world beyond you. I encourage you to use your sources of inspiration to find purpose and make a difference in your life and the lives of those around you.

Severn upperclassmen read to a kindergarte student after our annual convocation ceremony — **Ashley Clifford** '18, **Izzy Caballero** '30, **Jake Winter** '18

Make Purpose an Intentional Habit

Developing a lasting desire takes practice. And that practice simply comes from reptition over time. So practice what you want to have more of in your life — kindness, determination, curiosity, inclusion, love — because you will get better and better at these over time, and they will eventually become lasting habits. I hope this year you will discover something that you are really interested in, practice it often and let it evolve into a purpose.

Every one of you can find purpose that has a positive impact on your life and the lives of others. And I and your teachers look forward to helping you find a purpose and practice it as we together sustain Severn’s vibrant community.

Thank you,

Head of School Lagarde

An annual Severn tradition, Convocation assembles all students in grades K through 12 along with all faculty and staff to commemorate the beginning of school. Learn more about our Mission and Philosophy.

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