Secondary First

I'm used to taking assemblies at the infants school. I wasn't at first, but that's not too much of a problem now. I know the format: make sure they're not completely passive, ask them questions they can answer, try to have a Thing for them to look at (not always possible), tell a story and say a prayer. It's OK. Really.

On Tuesday I engaged in a different-order school visit. At church we have a pair of home-made posada figures which for the last couple of years have made their way around various houses in the village. This year it was arranged, quite without my involvement, that they should visit the local secondary school, Widelake, and stay behind the reception desk for a day or two. It was further suggested that I should go in and talk to the children about them.

Once I preached at the local private school at the top of the hill, but no matter how many hundreds of boys that involved they were the sons of gentlefolk and were serried in pews in a gigantic Gothic chapel while the restrained liturgy of Prayer Book Evensong lay like a comforting blanket over the proceedings. This was different. This was 500 or so teenagers in various states of disshevelment in a secular school, and what's more I actually see some of them round about the village.

It was fine, actually. I got the impression some of them were actually looking at my Powerpoint show about the Posada custom, about Joseph and Mary's journey to Bethlehem and the difficulties they might face traversing the same territory today, though I'm not sure how much went in. But it was an entirely polite and sober affair. I even found it rather more congenial than talking to six-year-olds, if I'm honest.

Afterwards one of the teachers brightly informed me that there was a Mexican student in the school who'd be talking about Posada in one of the classes. Good, that would at least give an opportunity to correct the mistakes I'd perpetrated.