Hawk's Eye View - October 10, 2025

Dear Harding Community,

I originally began writing this Thursday morning, before opening night. I focused on what I was feeling then: the strange state that teachers and parents often find themselves in when they are maximally invested in the outcome of something their student or child will do, but are also in a position of having very little ability to actually make that outcome happen! 

For all our power, there are times, especially as students and children get older, that we can no longer stage manage the outcomes we want for them, and we are only able to provide as much teaching as we can and do our best to create optimal conditions for those outcomes. 

That is a humbling and an uncomfortable position to be in. 

However, I was delayed getting my copy in and since then, opening night happened and…it was magical. 

In 40 years of directing plays, I don’t remember many opening nights like this. The overwhelming and immediate response of the audience, the energy and feeling in the theatre, followed up by many, many, many conversations, texts and emails have left me in a state of stunned grace. 

Something magical happened. And it transcends my ability to understand it, let alone describe it. 

As a professional, I wish I could bottle it up, figure out how to duplicate or replicate it. But, of course, I can’t, and here is the terrifying and exhilarating secret: The only reason this could happen was because the students were ultimately in charge; only they could make this happen.

 I had prepared them the best I could–teaching, correcting, nagging, reminding, etc. I had also set up a process, tried and true from years of directing. And, I tried my best to create a physical and emotional environment that would help and not detract. 

But ultimately, it came down to the kids. They collectively chose to put themselves fully out there. They took risks, they opened up and were extremely vulnerable. They kept going when it was hard and pushed through when they were tired. And they soared. 

And perhaps that is the real lesson: it is true that we adults find ourselves limited in creating the outcomes we may want. But that is actually a good thing!  

Because sometimes, the outcomes our children create will transcend our own vision. When students and children are allowed to fly, sometimes they will fall. That, of course, is part of life and learning, and while not pleasant, is part of the process. But other times they will soar to magnificent heights and amazing places we had not yet envisioned, achieving outcomes that will be beautiful and all the more so since they are unexpected. 

The one other lesson I am reflecting on is one I wish all students–and many adults–could understand and it is this: beauty is not equal to perfection, and success is not equal to flawlessness.

There were little gaffes and blips last night–there always are with live theatre, especially at Harding where we take pride in the fact that all of the cast, crew, and technicians are middle school students. Mistakes are inevitable. But they did not stop the magic from happening. In fact, it may be that they are part of the magic. Because if there is no risk of making a mistake, there is no chance of really soaring either. 

But there can be great beauty, joy, meaning, and value in something that is not perfect. That is true about plays. It is true about academics. It is true about students in general. And it is true, mercifully, about teaching and parenting. 

I will close simply by saying that I have now been at Harding for over two decades, where I have the privilege of working with students and colleagues from the youngest to the oldest. I had three children go through Harding. I am nagging my children to move to Nashville so my grandchildren can go to Harding as well. 

In the intervening years, I have come to believe deeply and passionately in the unique value of the PreK-8 model, specifically as it is practiced at Harding. I have seen magic, such as I have described above,  over and over in so many situations–big and small, public and private, in the classroom, athletics, and the theatre. While no school is perfect and no institution can possibly give everything to everyone, I believe Harding creates the conditions for growth and magic more than any other school, and gives all our growing Hawks chances to soar. 

Fondly,

Braden Bell