Friday Flyer - 9th January 2026
Dear Michael Hall Community,
Welcome back and Happy New Year 2026!
I hope that everyone had a fun and restful break over the festive period; and that everyone is fit and well ready to return to the world of school and work respectively.
Coming from a Scottish household there was always a huge importance placed on celebrating new year and how we welcome the year ahead with hopes of good health and good prospects: The copious amounts of cleaning that makes a good spring clean look like a light bit of dusting, the food preparation for guests (planned or otherwise), the finest drinks placed alongside the food, ensuring all debts are paid (including due homework when I was a child!) and being prepared for first footing to ensure that the first person across the threshold in the new year brought a gift to the house to symbolise good fortune.
I spent many years on the cold doorstep with my brothers and father waiting for the last bell to chime so that we were the first across the threshold armed with shortbread, chocolates and whisky. Every new year had a strong sense of ritual, rhythm and togetherness and I hope that this same sense has been felt by colleagues and children as we resume school routines, greet teachers as we cross the thresholds and reconnect with friends after a short break.
I was fortunate to experience life in another culture, spending a few years as a child in Mallorca. It was here that I saw a different Christmas, a different New Year (eating 12 grapes rapidly is harder than you think!) and a different emphasis put on the Three Kings. Christmas was very much the religious arrival of Christ as a saviour to the world, New Year was a loud family feast with lights and flames in the towns, and the arrival of the Three Kings was a time for parades and the main day for giving and receiving gifts. A different rhythm entirely, but with some familiarity I could relate to.
The journey, arrival and gift giving of the Three Kings is an important story and provides excellent points of reflection. The journey of the Wise Men following the guiding star speaks to our search for truth, wisdom, and purpose. Here at Michael Hall, we offer this story as not only a historical or religious narrative, but as a universal image of inner striving of learning to trust guidance, perseverance, and the light that leads us forward, even through uncertainty.
As we move through the new year and the new term, let’s hope that our pupils enjoy their experiences searching for that truth, acquiring new knowledge and skills, and finding a drive towards discovering their purpose.
Warm wishes for what has started as a cold month,
Stuart McWilliams
Principal
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