Finding Our Truth
This month’s Open Mike blog has been adapted from Mr. Fellin’s address to the boys at our Full School Assembly on October 6.
Long before Crescent stated its mission to build men of character from boys of promise, it lived by the motto Veritate Stamus et Crescimus. This Latin phrase means, “In truth, we stand and grow.” The motto appears in our School’s crest, which you proudly display on your uniform and for which you show your respect by stepping around it in our courtyard and elsewhere in the school. These four words are often underused yet really important. This year, I challenge you to rediscover their meaning.
Long before Crescent stated its mission to build men of character from boys of promise, it lived by the motto Veritate Stamus et Crescimus. This Latin phrase means, “In truth, we stand and grow.” The motto appears in our School’s crest, which you proudly display on your uniform and for which you show your respect by stepping around it in our courtyard and elsewhere in the school. These four words are often underused yet really important. This year, I challenge you to rediscover their meaning.
At Crescent, we want each of you to discover your truth as a means of growing as a person. We want you to discover who you are, what you stand for, and how you will live your life. In short, we want you to search for your character. And when I say search, I mean wrestle, thirst, interrogate, “get your hands dirty,” searching — as if for something buried deep in the sand.
The search for truth reminds me of a poem by the 12th-century Persian poet Rumi. It tells the story of a young man praying to Allah and becoming frustrated in not receiving a response. As a result, the young man stops praying and falls into a confused sleep. In his dream, the guide of souls asks why he stopped praying. “Because I never heard anything back,” he responds. “This longing you express,” replies the guide, “is the return message.”
I believe the guide is saying that what we seek is as important as the process of seeking itself. Sometimes we are more fixated on the ends that we forget the means; we wish for an intended outcome but ignore the process. We are all capable of growth if we are truly open to growing. Our truth lies within us, but it takes hard work to be fully conscious and self-aware. A good place to start is the three questions posed in our Portrait of a Graduate: Who am I? How do I lead? What is my legacy?
This is the beauty and power of our school’s motto, and I invite you to think deeply about your truth. When you put on your green blazer, school sweater, or sports uniform, or even when you consciously avoid stepping on the crest, become aware that you are choosing to discover your truth as a member of the Crescent community.
Veritate Stamus et Crescimus
