Summer reading

Summer is here and I am going to take a break from writing for a couple of weeks. 

Below is a complete list of entries over the past few months, in case you want to catch up on articles that now lie hidden amidst the archives of this blog.  Thanks again to everyone who regularly reads, comments and joins the conversation.  Together, we have many stories to tell.  Together, we can begin to make sense of this small part of the world in which we live.

Fragments of Hope
Sitting in front of the doctor, I am surprised how normal this all feels.

Eurostar Dad
When it comes to parenting, I am not a traditional dad.

On hospitals, twins and the lives of men
They say that there is no time like the present, but the present is often so hard to handle.

Building home with a plastic bag
Let me tell you a secret.

Come sit with me on my mourning bench
Grief will touch us all sooner or later.

Daniel W Hardy was not my friend
I learned this weekend that Daniel W Hardy died more than a year ago.

Letter to my children
Sometimes it is only at the end of a story that you know precisely where and when it begins and how far back you have to go.

It's a mad, mad world
I used to work in a psychiatric hospital.

There is no such thing as coincidence
A friend of mine wrote this on his Twitter account recently and it got me thinking.

Stories that are simply too good to be true
Have you noticed how urban myths are becoming increasingly difficult to spot?

A week in the life of an unfortunate au pair
Au pairs normally have a shelf life of about a year, someone once told me.

Life on the back of an envelope
Shopping for a birthday present for my brother, somewhere between London’s Covent Garden and Leicester Square, I stumbled upon an obscure bookshop.

The Couple in their Caravan
Waking up is always an adventure when you live in a caravan.

On the importance of making mistakes
We all make mistakes, constantly. We just can’t help it.

What do we all want for our children?
When it comes down to it, most of us want the same basic things for our children.

What kind of parent are you?
Wittgenstein once advised us not to look for the meaning of words, but instead take note of their use.

How do you paint happiness?
I can no longer remember the name of the Turkish poet who first asked this question, but I absolutely believe it is a question worth asking and difficult to ignore.

What's going on in The Shack?
If you haven’t yet read The Shack by William P. Young, you might want to look away now.

The pieces that simply will not fit
Playing in the park on a sunny day in early Spring, we look like a perfectly normal family.

The Chairs
Two chairs stood at the end of a beautiful garden.

Don't touch me!
Most of the time I am proud of my children.

A misty morning does not mean it will be a cloudy day
A wise person must have said this once. Wise people always say that kind of stuff.

The play of communication
Every now and again I come across an idea that I just can’t shake off.

Working hard at play
Children know what I am talking about here. It’s the adults who find it confusing.

Telling stories without using Powerpoint
Most of us have become pretty used to communicating in a linear sequential way. Powerpoint came along and convinced us that this was the only way to go.

The Philosophy of Communications
I imagine that most people stop from time to time and reminisce, if only to figure out how they got to where they are today.

The problem with innovation
What comes into your mind when you think of innovation?

The future of school communications
I’ve said it before, but everything’s changing... fast.

It’s all about fit! Choosing an international school in theBenelux
You could say that we’re all involved in the people business because no matter what our job is, we work with people every day.

Choosing an international school in Belgium
How do you make one of the most important decisions in your child's life?

The plural of anecdote is not data
Have you ever wondered how you, your team, your school is doing?

Imagining the school of the future
What will life be like in the year 2050?

Branding your school (Part 1)
Like it or not, we are all branded.

Branding your school (Part 2)
Read them in any order, one at a time or all at once. They are all connected and all point to a very different and exciting future.

All Aboard the Cluetrain
The world has change in the last 12 months. The rules of branding have also changed.

How green is our school? Thinking through the challenge of environmental impact
What should our children be learning these days?

Education for the world of work
Walking towards the Château reception, it was clear that an interesting conversation was taking place.

Something of a shared history and purpose
One of the most interesting pieces of memorabilia I have found in our school offices is a framed photo from 1951, depicting the AWCB as the first home of the International School of Brussels (ISB).

Telling Tales: The Role of Religion in Today’s Schools
Close your eyes for a moment and imagine your life without stories. Go on, try it! What would you miss most?

An old conversation about stories
Let’s face it, most conversations are forgotten.

Stories that are good enough to live by
It was on ordinary day in the classroom — a maths lesson just before lunch — but something extraordinary was about to happen.

Don't do that, it's not polite!
Question: What do Michelle Obama, Tony Blair and Paul Keating have in common?

Postcard from Brussels: Imagining a partnership full of promise
Our story begins with imagination.

Building Partnerships for the Future of International Education
Great places of learning are like great companies or organizations in that they are built upon a small number of fundamental principles: vision, people, discipline and sustainability.

Corporate investment in the future of our schools
There are no longer blanks on the world map.

How to use this blog
I just read that only 1 out of every 100 readers ever comment on blogs.