Last year in Tokyo, I had one of those moments you don’t easily forget. I was stepping into a small sushi restaurant tucked inside a busy Tokyo train station, the kind of place where the food is amazing, the service impeccable, and the doorways clearly not designed with 189cm Englishmen in mind.I ducked carefully to clear the low doorway, feeling rather pleased with myself for avoiding embarrassment. Unfortunately, I hadn’t accounted for what came after the door, the bright green 'EXIT' sign positioned just beyond it. I stood up confidently after ducking through the doorway and hit the edge of the sign at full, upright speed.
The result? A split head, a cracked tooth, and a stunned silence from the impeccably polite Japanese staff, who said nothing but instead brought me a complimentary ice-cream while I went in and out of consciousness, dignity thoroughly dented but my resolve to eat world-class sushi unshaken.
Later, as I sat there nursing my wound and a rapidly melting dessert, I found myself reflecting on the irony of being hit by a ‘safety' sign. Sometimes in life, it’s not the obvious, looming problem that gets us; it’s what comes just after. We navigate the big challenges with care, only to stumble on the smaller, unexpected ones we didn’t see coming.
Psalm 37:23-24 “The Lord makes firm the steps of the one who delights in Him; though he may stumble, he will not fall, for the Lord upholds him with His hand.”
It’s a good reminder that even our best intentions and careful planning can’t prevent every bump along the way. Life’s 'signs', those moments of surprise, pain, or humility, can actually be invitations to ponder on actions, reflect, and realign.
As we begin this new term, may we move forward with both purpose and perspective: careful where we step, gentle with ourselves and others when we stumble, and open to the quiet ways God teaches us as He uplifts us, even through the knocks that come our way.
And if one of those knocks comes unexpectedly, may we all have someone kind nearby, preferably with an ice-cream.
Mr Stuart Clark
Head of Primary
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