News from Macquarie 2100

WOW, What a day.

WOW, What an event.

WOW, What an amazing, inspirational, motivational man is Sam Cawthorn.

It fills one with great pride knowing that we have been able to positively affect so many of our younger community, as  happened last Thursday when Macquarie 2100 brought Sam Cawthorn into the lives of over 480 students and teachers from 7 schools from across our area. His messages of hope, belonging, positivity, opportunity, and life, were well received, and judging by the many positive comments circulating on social media since, will transform these kids for the rest of their lives.

For those unable to attend, you can learn from some of these key messages from Sam.

DONT TAKE FAMILY /COMMUNITY FOR GRANTED (one of Sam’s catch phrases) cherish those close to you, your family and loved ones. Your whole life can change in an instant (as in Sam’s car crash). Things don’t always turn out as you expect. This was evidenced by Sam after recently losing his younger brother from cancer.

PROXIMITY EQUALS POWER (another one of Sam’s catch phrases) means, the company you keep determines who you are. Or. You are the average of your five closest friends. The change in their  (the kids)whole attitude is clear evidence of how infectious and influential the people you associate with are, after allowing these kids to “hang out” with Sam for just an hour and a half.

CRISIS CREATES OPPORTUNITY (another catch phrase) When in a crisis or a downturn (in Sam’s case a major car crash), why wait for conditions to settle down so you can Bounce Back to where you were before, to the place which created the crisis in the first place. We should use the crisis to “Bounce Forward” into something new, something better, more positive. Learn from our past, but bounce forward and create the person you were meant to be.

WHAT YOU FOCUS ON IS WHAT YOU’LL GET. If in a crisis, doldrums, or in pain, and if that’s what you focus on, then that’s what you’ll get, Pain, Crisis and doldrums. When you should instead focus on the positive (in Sam’s case still alive, supportive family, can still play the guitar, etc) then that’s where your energy will go.

While introducing Sam to the students I took the opportunity to also introduce Macquarie 2100 to them. By show of hands the majority had very little knowledge of what it stands for, let alone had heard of it.

Macquarie 2100.

 Macquarie – quite obvious. The Macquarie River / Lower Macquarie Valley.

2100 – Equals the 21^st century.

Lower Macquarie Valley in the 21^st Century.

A brief history followed. In the mid 1990’s the communities of Warren, Trangie and Narromine worked together to piece together a plan for the next 100 years, a plan for the 21^st century for our patch. This community plan, your plan, identifies several strategies to improve the livelihoods of those in our valley covering the Warren and Narromine Shires. It covers everything from the environment, landscape, the river, to the economy and business, to the health of our people and communities.

 I’m sure, judging by the positive responses to their experience with Sam Cawthorn, that these students from now on when they hear the words, Macquarie 2100, will know that good things are happening.