FRIDAY FLYER-Issue 178

‘Resilience’ is a commonly used word in schools. Its meaning is broadly understood, but the methods that schools choose to attempt to develop students’ resilience can often be misguided.

When the notion of ‘resilience’ and the need to develop students’ resilience became popular in schools in the United Kingdom in the early 2000s, it came hand-in-hand in many schools with attempts to show students that failing was ‘OK’. A top girls' school in the UK made the headlines in 2012 when it planned a ‘failure week’  to teach students to embrace risk, build resilience and learn from their mistakes. Mistakes are vastly different from failure. Whilst the emphasis on trying, rather than playing it safe is unquestionably valuable, the implication that ‘failure’ is acceptable is questionable at best. Resilience cannot be taught, it must be earned through experience and hardship, and is an outcome of setting ambitious goals that one must strive to meet.

Hugh Glass was born in Pennsylvania, America in 1783. He was an American frontiersman, fur trapper and trader, hunter and explorer, but started life as a sailor in the years 1817 - 1820.

As a sailor, he was captured by pirates and forced into piracy himself. Glass and a companion on the pirate ship eventually escaped and got themselves back to land, but were swiftly captured by native Americans (the Wolf Pawnee tribe). Somehow,  Glass was adopted into the Wolf Pawnee tribe and lived with them until the summer of 1822. Unfortunately,  his companion that he escaped piracy with was sacrificed by the Wolf Pawnee tribe.

Glass left the Wolf Pawnee tribe and traveled to St. Louis. It was in St. Louis that he joined an expedition. In 1823, the expedition group, whilst traveling America, tried to trade with the Arikara tribe but a battle broke out. Fifteen men were killed during the battle at the Arikara villages; Glass was wounded, but survived the battle. The Arikara tribe were fierce and skilled warriors, and so to survive a battle with them would show exceptional grit and determination.

In August of 1823 the expedition was attacked by the Mandan tribe on the Grand River. Two men were killed. Glass survived yet another battle but he was to be tested further when he unexpectedly disturbed a mother grizzly bear and her two cubs near the banks of the Grand River. A large female grizzly bear can weigh anywhere from 110 to 160 kilograms (about 250 to 350 pounds) and reach almost 9 feet (2.7 m) tall when standing on her legs. If a mother bear perceives her cubs to be in danger, then she will attack. In this instance, she may have thought Glass was a threat to her cubs, and therefore attacked him. The mother bear seriously wounded Glass, puncturing his throat, breaking his leg, and leaving him with numerous deep wounds.

After the attack, the bears moved on and left Glass critically injured. His expedition companions found him, but due to the severity of his injuries, considered him dead. So they buried him and took his equipment and supplies. Despite his injuries, Glass regained consciousness, but found himself abandoned and without weapons or equipment. He had terrible wounds, a broken leg, and deep cuts on his back that exposed his bare ribs. He lay injured and alone, more than 200 miles from the nearest American settlement, at Fort Kiowa, on the Missouri River. Refusing to accept his fate, he set the bone of his own leg, wrapped himself in the bear hide his companions had placed over him as a shroud, and began crawling back to Fort Kiowa.

From August until October in 1823, using the landscape as navigational landmarks, Glass crawled overland south toward the Cheyenne River where he fashioned a crude raft and floated downstream to Fort Kiowa. This was a journey of over 200 miles. Despite his injuries, Glass arrived at Fort Kiowa in October 1823. Glass made a full recovery and lived a long and adventurous life.

There is no doubt Hugh Glass was an exceptionally resilient man, but was he ‘resilient’ or was he simply, and relentlessly, committed to his goals? Perhaps the word itself, ‘resilience’, is a red herring, and students would best be served by the words ambition, aspiration and commitment and, of course, ‘hard work’. Confucius, China's most famous teacher, philosopher, and political theorist, wrote: “The will to win, the desire to succeed, the urge to reach your full potential…these are the keys that will unlock the door to personal excellence.” This is precisely the message Epsom College in Malaysia presents to its students every day to challenge them to succeed,  and earn the resilience they will need to navigate the rest of their lives successfully.

Best wishes for the weekend,
Mr Richard Lord, Head of Computer Science.