The Beauty of Betweeness 

- By Adrianne Finley Odell

In an interview with psychiatrist and author, Ian McGilchrist, on the podcast The Hidden Brain, Shankar Vedantam talks with McGilchrist about why the brain is divided in half and some of the age-old questions related to the left brain versus the right brain.  In the interview, Gilchrist talks about “betweenness,” in reference to music:

“A note is a simple tone. What does it mean? Actually, it means nothing...It's the gaps between the notes, the gaps that make melody, the gaps that make harmony and so on. But the gaps are just, as it were, silence. They don't mean anything either. So if you put lots of things together that don't mean anything with lots of gaps that don't mean anything, you get something...

That's what I call betweenness. So it's the notes and the gaps plus whatever happens when they're all edited together. Something new emerges."

I thought about this idea of “betweenness” and the importance and beauty of it in our day-to-day lives.  In our impatient world, we have made a habit of rushing to the next thing. When we are in the thick of winter, we can’t wait until Spring.  Young people want the job, the promotion, the corner office, the big house without having to experience the internship, the hard work or the steps needed to get to their goal.  We want immediate results when we start a diet or exercise regimen without the hard work necessary to get there. When we see the big picture and recognize both the significance and the importance of the “betweenness”, we can step back and appreciate the journey.  We can acknowledge the beauty in the routines, the mundane, and sometimes the hard work along the way.

McGilchrist argues that Western society has become overly left-brained, focusing on the details rather than the big picture.  Clearly in order to function, we need both left and right brain to work well. If we are overly focused on the details, however we can lose sight of purpose, meaning and beauty.  In our hyper-connected world with increasing rates of anxiety and depression, purpose, meaning and beauty are more important than ever before. We must appreciate the big picture to find purpose.  And if we value the in betweenness, we can embrace the hard work--and sometimes the struggle-- that is involved in the details.

- Friday, March 1st - NO SCHOOL For Lower School and Middle School, Conference Day  (EDP is available), Upper School is in session.
- Friday, March 1st - Re-enrollment / Financial Aid Deadline: Returning families must apply by this date to receive priority enrollment and financial aid consideration.
- Monday, March 4th - Theme Week Starts for Lower School
- Tuesday, March 5th - Admissions Morning, 8:30-10:00am
- Sunday, March 10th - Light Bulb Changing at Roycemore, 12:00-4:00pm
- Friday, March 15th - Early Dismissal at 11:30am (EDP is available), P3 Expo for Middle School from 10:00-11:30, Lower School Palio at 6:00pm, Middle and Upper School Palio at 7:30pm
- Saturday, March 16th - Upper School Parent Social, Game Night

Congratulations to the Upper School students who participated in this year's Spring Play.  With only three weeks to prepare, they came together and put on a wonderful production of Slaughterhouse Five.  Well done everyone!

This week is the deadline to complete your re-enrollment forms.  All current families have been sent re-enrollment forms that must be submited by Friday, March 1st in order to secure your spot for next year.  Please be aware that discounts are available for families who take advantage of our Advanced Payment options.   For questions about re-enrollment, please contact Tanise Robnett [email protected].

Extended Day Program (EDP) Camp

Open To Current Roycemore Families
Monday, April 1st - Friday, April 5th
Grades Pre-School - 6th
7:30am - 6:00pm
Hot lunch Included
Weekly Rate is $400, Day rate is $85
Contact Melinda Orzoff with questions: [email protected]

REGISTER HERE 

Developmental Basketball Camp 

Open To Both Current and Non-Roycemore Families
March 25-29
Grades 4-8
9:00am-3:00pm
$300 with Lunch Included
Boys and Girls Welcome
Call Coach Jones with questions: 847-910-3442
ROYCEMORE FAMILIES REGISTER HERE
(Please Note: Non-Roycemore families can sign up for Baketball Camp.  Click here and search under "Roycemore".)

Do you know anyone interested in finding out more about Roycemore?  Attending one of our Admissions Mornings is a great way to see what Roycemore looks and feels like!  Interested families are invited to stop in any time during the event to talk to faculty, take a tour and meet current students who can share what the Roycemore experience has meant to them. 

Next Admissions Morning
Tuesday, March 5th
8:30-10:00am
Click Here for more information and to register.

Answer: All of us!

Roycemore School will change over from fluorescent light bulbs to LED light bulbs. This will help us save approximately 242,149 kWh in energy annually!  We need all hands on deck for this quick community change over, with jobs for all ages!  Please join students, parents, faculty and friends as we take another step toward making our building more environmentally and economically efficient.

Sunday, March 10, 2019
12:00 - 4:00 pm 
Daylight Saving Day! 

Sponsored by Mrs. Bixby's Sustainability class and the Facilities Committee of the Board of Trustees.

Scholarship Dinner and Auction

Join us for this year's Roycemore's Scholarship Dinner and Auction on Saturday, April 27th.  For more information, please contact Sara McGuire at [email protected].

Second grade students at Roycemore have been using Adobe Spark to create videos about historical figures who inspire them.  They've also shown how these leaders use the same Seven Habits of Leadership that our students are learning about on a daily basis. Here is a video created by Second Grader, Zoha Raheem, about Malala Yousafzai.

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