“A Cheerful Heart is Good Medicine” - Mr Pearce addresses pupils

November 29, 2024

On Friday 29 November, Mr Pearce addressed pupils on cheerfulness, specifically in the face of adversity.

Reading | Proverbs 17:22: A cheerful heart is good medicine, but a crushed spirit dries up the bones.

A question for you this morning: what does a clown in a hospital, a Royal Marine, a jelly bean, and a Christmas light have in common? Here it is again: what does a clown in a hospital, a Royal Marine, a jelly bean, and a Christmas light have in common?

I read an article recently which might surprise you. Our Bible reading today told us that “a cheerful heart is good medicine”, and I was surprised to see an article in The Week with an almost identical title: Laughter is an effective medicine. Let me read you an excerpt:

Having clowns visit seriously ill children in hospital can speed up their recovery time, say researchers. The scientists tracked 51 children aged two to 18 who had spent time in hospital with pneumonia. Some of the children just had standard care; the others had also been visited by a clown twice daily during their first 48 hours in hospital, with each visit lasting 15 minutes. …the clowns sought to relax the children using humour, music, singing.... The study found that the children who saw the clowns were discharged considerably earlier than ones who were not visited… They needed less time on intravenous antibiotics… their heart rates were lower, and they had fewer inflammatory markers.

A cheerful heart, it seems, really is good medicine. I then read of a separate study into the healing effects of laughter: researchers found that you can relieve the symptoms of certain medical conditions if, over an eight-week period, you spend 5 minutes, four times a day, repeating absurd phrases such as "hee hee hee”, “hah hah hah”, or – and I’m quoting directly from the medical research here – “cheese cheese cheese”. I don’t know how they came up with the idea for this second study, but I can only think that the doctors’ planning meeting was invaded by one of the clowns from the first study.

Just in case you’re beginning to suspect this talk of “cheerful hearts” is all rather fluffy, a little bit “Disney”, I should tell you that the focus on cheerfulness is not unique to clowns: the Royal Marines are big on this too. I wonder if you knew that one of the Royal Marines’ mottos is “Cheerfulness in the face of adversity”; for all their obvious focus on courage and physical toughness, they also talk about “making humour the heart of morale”. Major Ben Richardson spent 20 years with the Royal Marines facing “adversity” – or to give ‘adversity’ it’s more common name, “difficult and challenging stuff”. Major Richardson led troops in Iraq and Afghanistan; he also won the Commando Medal, which is awarded for four key qualities: courage, determination, unselfishness – and yes: cheerfulness in the face adversity. When the chips are down; when the night darkens; when the problems close in; when your transport doesn’t turn up and you have to walk an extra 10 miles – commandos will tell you that very often, it’s cheerfulness in the face of adversity that keeps the team going, boosts morale, and improves problem-solving and operational effectiveness.

Now, there might not be many of you planning on a career in the marines, or, for that matter, as a professional clown. So why might you care about all this?

Because a cheerful heart is good medicine for us all. Our adversity may not be a military operation in harsh conditions, but it might well be a nasty piece of homework, a falling out among friends, a poorly loved one, or a cold and rainy loss on the sports pitch or the river… and we need to know that a cheerful heart is good medicine anytime, anywhere.

You might be amazed at the cheerful power of you, being the one in your group who simply makes the most of small joys – cheerfulness in the face of adversity is about celebrating that dry pair of socks buried deep in your DoE kit bag; producing that bag of jelly beans at just the right moment in a revision session with friends; making that cup of tea when it’s most needed; noticing that one funny thing against the gloomy background. Cheerfulness in the face of adversity is about a kind word to a comrade as you roll up your own sleeves.

“Yes”, you might say “but in those moments, how am I supposed to cheer others up when I don’t feel cheerful myself?!”

But don’t you see that’s the point? Cheerfulness in the face of adversity – like love itself – is not so much a feeling or an emotion; it’s a decision, a deliberate act that we undertake in service of others, because your cheerfulness in tough times doesn’t only build others up: very often, you’ll find, it creates a rising tide that ends up lifting you as well. And in those times when acting cheerfully really is beyond you, you can be grateful for the medicine of someone else’s cheerful heart – the person, perhaps, who put the Christmas lights up on the gate to the Chapel, a light in the darkness each morning as you trudge in through gloom and the frost.

And this cheerfulness is something I see every day in you as pupils as I move about our school. It’s one of the brilliant things about working in this school, so let me end by saying thank you. Thank you, for your cheerfulness; thank you, you jellybean bringers; thank you, you noticers of funny things; you sayers of encouraging words: I hope you know the power of your cheerful heart in lifting the spirits of the whole room. Clowns in hospital; Royal Marines; jelly beans and Christmas lights - A cheerful heart is good medicine. Let me end with another verse from the Bible, from Thessalonians: "Therefore, encourage one another and build each other up, just as in fact you are doing."

< Older Post

Newer Post >

The Tortoise, The Monk and Mary - An Address from Revd Child

By Eleanor Lewis • May 15, 2026

At the Home of Martha and Mary – Luke 10:38-42 As Jesus and his disciples were on their way, he came to a village where a woman named Martha opened her home to him. She had a sister called Mary, who sat at the Lord’s feet listening to what he said. But Martha was distracted by all the preparations that had to be made. She came to him and asked, “Lord, don’t you care that my sister has left me to do the work by myself? Tell her to help me!” “Martha, Martha,” the Lord answered, “you are worried and upset about many things, but few things are needed—or indeed only one. Mary has chosen what is better, and it will not be taken away from her.” Many of you will know the story of the Tortoise and the Hare - the one where the hare dashes off at the start of the race and finds himself so far ahead that he reckons he has time for a quick nap under a tree. When he awakes, he sees the slow but steady tortoise crossing the finish line ahead of him. A classic fable about two different approaches – the hare-brain versus the measured mind. Buddhist tradition uses a different animal to describe a similar thing. ‘Monkey mind’ is a way of describing that feeling when we’re rushing so that our attention won’t settle on anything. That state of mind is a bit like a monkey jumping around all over the place. The opposite of the monkey mind is the monk mind. As the name suggests, this is the state of mindfulness that monks cultivate as they prepare for meditation. It is a deliberate calming of the thoughts, so that instead of jumping around, everything is centred and focused. People who practice meditation, both in Buddhism and in other traditions, will tell you that this is hard at first, but it’s a skill that can be learned. The equivalent story in the Christian tradition is the one we heard just now – the story of Mary and Martha. It’s a little surprising when you first hear it; after all, Martha appears to be working hard, while Mary is just sitting around doing – apparently – nothing. And yet at the end of the story, it’s Martha that Jesus gently rebukes. “Martha, Martha, you are worried and upset about many things…” Again, the story gives us two opposites. Martha is suffering from monkey mind – she is being hare-brained as she dashes round the kitchen, trying to pull everyone else into her maelstrom. Mary is doing something different – but she is doing something. For one thing, she is being deliberately still. She has found her place of quiet at the feet of her Rabbi. And for another thing, she is listening. The Bible tells us elsewhere that Jesus has the words of eternal life; Mary is paying attention to those words. Measured Mary is using her monk mind. The Trinity term can be a busy one. There’s lots to do – much of it very positive. Cricket, tennis, athletics – all those things you can do outside when the weather warms up. Drama, dance, music – all culminating in a live stage performance on the Lower Close in July. The academic year reaches its crescendo and its conclusion. At the moment we’re all aware of some end-of-year assessments coming up. In an atmosphere like this, you might think that we’d all go a bit hare-brained. Maybe we do a bit, sometimes – although actually we don’t always, which suggests that between us we might have learned a few self-calming skills already. All the same, I think the example of the tortoise, the monk and Mary bears repeating at this pacey stage of term. If we find ourselves becoming ‘worried and upset about many things’, try and remember that things are not what’s most important in life. God and other people are what’s ultimately important, Jesus suggests: ‘Few things are needed – or indeed only one.’ We concluded our assembly with a minute of simply sitting quietly, followed by this prayer: Lord God, you hold both heaven and earth in a single peace. Give peace among the nations, peace in our homes, and peace in our hearts. Amen.

Tilly G (Middle 5) and Her Teammates Win Gold at Cheerleading Worlds

By Eleanor Lewis • May 14, 2026

Winning gold at the Cheerleading Worlds is something most athletes only dream of, but for Tilly G and her teammates at Unity Allstars Flame, that dream became reality through hard work, dedication, and sacrifice. Tilly is part of Unity Allstars Flame, an all-girl under-18 team that became World Champions in their very first year as a Cheerleading Worlds team. Their achievement is even more impressive because many teams spend years trying to qualify for the Cheerleading Worlds, let alone win gold. Over the past year, Tilly has shown huge commitment to cheerleading. Since joining Unity Allstars, she and her family have travelled around three hours each way to training twice a week. This meant long nights travelling home, balancing schoolwork alongside training, and giving up so much of her free time to follow her passion. Cheerleading at this level requires strength, teamwork, trust, and determination. Athletes spend hours perfecting routines, stunts, tumbling, and dance sections, all while learning to perform under pressure. Despite the challenges, Tilly continued to work hard and support her team every step of the way. As a first-year Cheerleading Worlds team, Flame exceeded expectations throughout the competition. On day one, the team suffered a minor fall during their routine, resulting in deductions to their score. Despite this, they still finished the day in 1st place and qualified for day two. Determined to prove themselves, Flame returned to the floor on day two with confidence and absolutely smashed the routine, the atmosphere in the area was amazing , they delivered a powerful, clean routine with zero deductions. Their outstanding performance secured them the title of World Champions, winning their division by an incredible 10-point margin and bringing home the gold medal. Something that Tilly will remember for the rest of her life. Her journey shows that success comes from perseverance, commitment, and believing in yourself. Behind the gold medal are months of sacrifice, hard work, and determination, making this achievement even more special.

A Buzzing Blake Studio with the Infants Performing The Bee Musical

By Eleanor Lewis • May 14, 2026

Our Lower One and Upper One pupils delighted audiences with two wonderful performances of The Bee Musical in The Blake Studio. The children proudly took to the stage for a special morning performance for our friends at The Great Hospital, followed by an afternoon performance for parents and families. It was a real joy to showcase the performing arts talents of some of our youngest pupils. Over the few weeks, the children have worked incredibly hard learning their songs and lines, while growing in confidence through drama, comedy and character performance. Their enthusiasm and commitment shone through in every scene, and it was clear just how much they had enjoyed bringing this lively production to life. The show featured some fantastic performances, with many of the children delivering their roles with confidence, expression and excellent comic timing. The audience was thoroughly entertained by the uplifting musical numbers, including the catchy Bee Bop , the energetic Bees Knees and the unforgettable Honey Honey Honey Bee Mine . Mrs Barclay praised the children for their wonderful performances and dedication throughout the rehearsal process, reflecting on what a special experience the production has been for everyone involved. She commented, “The children have loved every part of this journey, from learning their songs and lines to performing so confidently on stage and working together to create such a fun and polished production. I have been so impressed by the confidence, teamwork and enthusiasm shown by every pupil. These performances were a true reflection of all their hard work and of just how much they have enjoyed being part of this very special show.”