Contributed by:
Liu Yanping, Alumni parent (Ashley and Crystal's mother,
admitted in 2007, graduated from the High School in 2017)
On December 18, 2017, the last school-wide gathering of the year, I presented gifts to the school on behalf of the first cohort of graduates and their parents. One such gift, Water Droplets Pierce Stone, was a work of art created by the Class of 2018. The work of art is located in the corridor on the second floor of the indoor stadium and music classroom on Songjiang campus.
The meaning of "Water Droplets Pierce Stone"
A single drop of water that falls on a stone does not cause any change, but many droplets of water that repeatedly fall on the same place can eventually wear down the stone. As individuals, we can draw inspiration from it: monumental changes do not happen overnight, but rather over a long period of sustainable and uninterrupted development. They result from a sense of foresight, perseverance, and a clear vision.
A message from Jonas, the designer and project leader for "Water Droplets Pierce Stone", to his junior classmates:
Don’t rely on your teachers and classmates to help you find the way. Situations change too fast, and the path taken two years ago may no longer exist today. A better idea is to try and figure out the way for yourself. The one thing that everyone must keep in mind is that there is no easy shortcut here. It is inevitable that in reaching your destination, you will have to take some long detours, but look on the bright side: This will teach you how to do things more efficiently in the future. You will learn from your mistakes and even have a good story or two to tell. Second, if I really want to give some advice, I will say to not stop challenging yourself, find a seemingly impossible goal, and work hard to achieve it. In the process you will learn new skills and be more inspiring to those around you. More importantly, once you set a higher standard for yourself, you will be much more successful in academics, sports, and life.
Behind-the-scenes:
The first cohort of graduates designed and produced a piece of artwork, entitled "Water Droplets Pierce Stone" to Pao School by themselves. They began planning for the 10-year anniversary of Pao School in March-April 2017. But they were then caught up in the intense preparations for the IB exam, the graduation ceremony, travel, and preparations for their university studies, which for some students required moving overseas. As a result, the idea was temporarily shelved. However, in the end, student Jonas was willing to take on the responsibility for the project. He invested a lot of time and resources in July and August to create artwork that expressed the best wishes of the first cohort of graduates and their parents!
The production and installation costs of "Water Droplets Pierce Stone" were raised by parents of the graduation preparation. In addition, many parents who had left Pao School also participated after learning about the project as they wanted to send their thanks and best wishes to the school.
As a show of gratitude and to thank Jonas for spearheading the project, the graduation preparation team offered him a design fee be paid voluntarily by the parents. However, when Jonas learned about it, he decided to donate the entire fee to the Pao School Foundation. The Foundation eventually decided to put the money into WeeStudios, the club Jonas founded. Over the years, the club has been responsible for the planning and design of the school yearbook and many other internal and external activities.
The artwork information card for “Water Droplets Piercing Stone” was created by Mr. Xiang, who has worked with the school for many years, as well as with Jonas and the graduating class. When he found out about the project, Mr. Xiang insisted on making the card for free. The parent preparation team decided to add the fee for the artwork introduction card and the fee for other costs into Jonas’ design fee, which was transferred to the Pao School Foundation.
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