The Last Word

By Thomas O'Connor | Posted: Monday March 7, 2022

“Most people miss great opportunities, because of their misperception of time. Don’t wait! The time will never be Just Right.”

Just 4 years ago, I was walking through the archway as a little Year 9, fearing the unknown of what lies ahead of me. Given the choice to go to boarding school by my parents I had no hesitation to say “YES”.

I was from a relatively small primary school in Alexandra of only 130 students. So as you can imagine it was quite a significant change coming into a school of 800 boys in a big city and knowing only one or two people.

I vividly remember the nerves I felt on my first day of school. My heart was racing as I stood among 150 other year nines while we were welcomed by a haka presented by the Year 13s. I couldn’t help but picture myself in their shoes, longing for the day that I’d get to wear long pants and a blue blazer. In the blink of an eye here I am 4 years down the track, with an opportunity to stand in front of you as a senior in long pants and a blue blazer to talk about my experiences and learnings during my time as an OB’s boy.

I have found myself caught in multiple conversations with my mates recently, stunned at the fact that we are already in our last year of high school. It may not seem it at the time, but as you work your way through the year groups and come into your final year at school, you realise just how short your time here actually is.

We live in a world of uncertainty at the moment, with the biggest unknown being based around Covid-19. Already this year we have had many school events and opportunities disrupted by Covid-19.

This leaves us as individuals and as a school in a situation of doubt and fear especially for the Year 13’s as their last year of high school lies in the hands of a forever-changing virus. Every day we are threatened with the possibility of the year being cut short by another lockdown or cancellation of school events or opportunities. Five years is such a short part of your life, for it to be made even shorter as months and opportunities are seized by Covid-19 and lockdowns.

Another way we can miss opportunities is through things like injury, procrastination, a selection or non-selection: be it in a band, sport, academic scholarship, or a job. We miss opportunities day in and day out. Unfortunately, some of them are out of our control but it's how we bounce back and make sure we don’t miss the next one that's important. Learn from your missed opportunities and make sure to come back better and stronger than before.

At OB’s we are so privileged to be presented with many opportunities. Our teachers and parents within the school work so hard to provide opportunities to help prepare us as best as possible for the ‘real world’. Some opportunities are big, some are small, and some take us to a dead-end but we learn along the way. Maybe a small opportunity taken now could lead to greater opportunities later!

Why not break it down into the opportunities we are presented with each day or each week? What about the opportunity to be at school? As we saw last year Auckland schools weren’t able to do that for a large part of the year. What about the subjects we are offered? That could be considered as an opportunity. You may learn or discover an interest that may set you on a path that could shape your future. What about the value of the teacher in front of you? Why not turn their knowledge and skills into an opportunity to learn something new. What about the opportunity we all have to influence someone else? To help someone, to make the school, a class, a club, a family, a hostel, or a workplace, a better place to be? To create or continue a legacy by the example we set, to make the opportunities we all have, bigger than just being about ourselves??? There are so many opportunities that we take for granted every day. So boys, work hard when given an opportunity, even if it seems small, because it may take you or someone close to you further than you would’ve thought.

In true OBHS fashion, I will finish with a quotation by Andy Rooney, an American radio and television writer. “Opportunities are never lost, someone will always take the one you miss.”

Cheers, boys.