I went to a school presentation evening last night and it went well enough although it was held in the gym and was decidedly parky (that's nippy, chilly or even cold if you've not heard that expression before!). The headmaster stole the opening part of the show with his yellow shirt and brown tie: can't imagine who his style guru is but they must have been having a night off. The kids were reasonably smartly turned out on average but I did find it surprising that some parents and children think it's suave to turn up to a formal presentation evening in torn jeans, horrifically untidy hair or wackily masticating chewing gum as they collected their awards. These events are often the highlight of a person's life in many ways and who needs someone else to make some kind of poxy statement and lower the tone? The senior girl's choir did well but I did wonder why they had chosen to sing nothing but songs from across the Pond: as if we don't have enough of our own songs to celebrate. They also had a large painting by the stage that included a prominent version of the Stars and Stripes: I don't get it. I do know that if this had been an American school or even a French or German one there would have been our own national flag in a prominent place of display. Not in good old modern Britain, you don't. Apart from that it was interesting to see that the most successful children at that school excelled both academically and as people: they spent a lot of their own time volunteering, organising, working in the community AND working hard at their school work. These young people have realised that they are in charge of their own lives: they don't wait for someone to tell them what to do, they just get up and do it. Ask these people if they are ever bored, if they ever have nothing to do and do they ever just sit at home glued to the television. You know the answers. Well done them! I also believe that if you got to know these young achievers well enough you would find that they aren't especially privileged: they're not necessarily super smart either. Clever enough of course but the important point is that they drive themselves: they are smarter than the average for that reason. They will beat many of their contemporaries in many of life's races because of their positive attitude and they deserve it. The lesson is, get off your @rse and get on with it! DW