STRAWBERRIES

By Simon Elliott, CST

At the end of The Dice Man, the protagonist finds himself in a tricky spot Escaping capture for heinous crimes, he has fallen over a cliff edge. Grasping onto a vine halfway down the mountain, he looks up, sees the police, and a certain life sentence; below, certain death As he contemplates these unpleasant outcomes he glimpses something nearby: wild strawberries. “Aha” he thinks - another choice.

Loosely based on a Zen teaching, the ending (and the book) constantly reminds us that we have choice and agency in life. The choices might not be what we want them to be, and might not solve all of our problems, but they do exist

I’m reminded of this daily as we attempt to make things better for children or colleagues in school Some situations seem so difficult that the temptation to give in to hopelessness is strong. But it’s rare that nothing can be done.

Next time you find yourself in a seemingly hopeless situation in school, ask yourself or your colleagues this question: “what is the next action?” No matter how difficult the situation, I bet you find some strawberries somewhere