The Quality of Mercy

Portia's soliloquy in Act IV of The Merchant of Venice has always been among my favourites from among the soliloquies of Shakespeare's plays.

The quality of mercy is not strained.
It droppeth as the gentle rain from heaven
Upon the place beneath. It is twice blest:
It blesseth him that gives and him that takes.
‘Tis mightiest in the mightiest; it becomes
The throned monarch better than his crown.
His scepter shows the force of temporal power,
The attribute to awe and majesty,
Wherein doth sit the dread and fear of kings.
But mercy is above this sceptered sway;
It is enthroned in the hearts of kings;
It is an attribute of God himself;
And earthly power doth then show like God's
When mercy seasons justice.

I have had to concern myself with issues of justice and mercy these days. Last evening the boys for the upteenth time were late for a regularly schedule school event, the evening meal. Not only were most of them late, they were only beginning to think about getting ready for dinner when I went to their dormitory at 6:45 p.m. How to handle this?

I told them to go to their rooms and wait for me. I then went to the multi-purpose hall and got those few what had reported on time (20 or so) settled and eating. I then returned to the boys' dorm, told them they would eat their meal and then would report immediately back to the dormitory, which they would clean "like it had never been cleaned before" followed by early lights out for them. While they did that, the rest of the students enjoyed watching the second half of The Fellowship of the Ring, the first half of which had been very popular.

I had received a report yesterday that some of the students had been in the teacher work room without accompaniment or permission -- and using the computer! This morning I gathered the nine of them, and soon discovered one had entered the room and immediately left and that two others similarly left soon after realizing that there was no teacher in the room and that they probably shouldn't be there.

I told the remaining students that in many schools such behaviour would be cause for immediate expulsion but that I had decided that this time it did not rise to that level but that they would all be suspended from classes this next week. What will they be doing instead? Clearing rocks and stones from a piece of land which will become our community garden. Additionally, they have to write letters home informing their parents (to be accompanies by my own letter) and also write letters to the teachers apologizing.

One of the things that I always tell teachers is that student mischief is always an opportunity to teach them about the mission of the school. I hope these events and my response to them help form these students into the sorts of leaders that will make us proud to count them as alumni someday.