Scotch College

Tears in Heaven

The Scotch Family was deeply saddened by the sudden death of Year 8 student Peter Earle in March.

Peter was a vibrant and involved student throughout his time at Scotch from Junior school into the Senior School. His involvement ranged from diving, swimming, skiing and football. Through these activities he touched many people, peers and adults alike. In essence Peter had the true qualities of a 'boy', fun, laughter, honesty, mischief and love, every boy puts these together in different ways and we applaud Peter for the way he put these qualities together.

The school shares the grief the Earle family is experiencing and our thoughts and prayers are with Peter's brothers Andrew (Yr 8), Mitchell (Yr 11), Matthew (Class of 2002) and his father David.

Peter was a member of the Organ Donation Program and the family has received enormous comfort from the knowledge that Peter's passing has given hope to others.

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It was Ash Wednesday. A day Christians mark by rubbing ash on their forehead as a reminder that we are but dust and ashes. At school we needed no additional reminder. The flag was lowered to half-mast all week. Barely three months since last it fluttered, benightedly, at that desolate position.

While boys went about their usual, and usually boisterous, schoolyard activities, there was a leavening of solemnity, an acceptance that some groups were quiet, just 'hanging' together in silence. Everybody knew that tears had been shed.

The shock is still impacting on parents everywhere. Some were angry, all were saddened, one wrote to the paper, one phoned to ask if there was a prayer group to join. With others, I was planning 'A Service to Remember Peter', a special chapel service for Year 8. Boys who knew Peter had been invited to remember something, and their memories were both boyish and beautiful.

I remember… when Pete was Mary and I was Joseph in the Christmas play in Grade 1.

…In year 6 Peter was the vice-captain and I was the captain. It was family day, and the last race had come… me and Peter were watching the race. It was Andrew Earle for Healy and Jimmy Jewitt for Campbell. We were screaming our heads off. The race ended in a draw, the cup belonged to Peter and I! We held the cup up together. I have had many great times with Peter over the last few years, but that stuck in my mind.

… Peter playing his 50th game for Glen Iris. He had at least 50 possessions, playing a blinder of a game from the wing.

… the time when he used to come around to my house and when he got there straight away he would ask for food… when I was his next door neighbour and we used to always play water fights over our two fences.

…last year at camp when me and Pete and Fergo were wrestling in the water on the beach. Pete gave me a blood nose and Fergo and I gave him a headache. But we had fun.

…flipping the billycart deliberately… we were doing these stunts around my neighbourhood and we filmed it…

On the holidays I saw Pete at Portsea. He was with some girls. We were jumping off the pier and he was having the time of his life.

I can remember his big smile that would light up

the darkest rooms and would make everyone warm and happy.

What a collection of memories! Memories alive in young minds and which, because shared, now inhabit our minds too. Wouldn't it be good if the software of our minds could store images of beautiful times in the future?

If only we could remember, with the same happiness, reality to come!

Writing to grief stricken Christians the apostle Paul provides such images. He says that just as 'we wear the image of the man of earth, so we will also wear the image of the man from heaven'. He describes Adam as the earthman, and Jesus, the man from heaven. The man from heaven became a man of earth for us. He truly died. But death had no claim on him and his resurrection changed things forever.

Like Adam, we are of the earth, Ash Wednesday people. But with the Spirit of Jesus we, like Him, are invited to imagine his home as ours. The image Jesus himself gave us is of going to our father's house, a large and spacious place. There we will find our home.

If our faith, though small like a mustard seed, can remember that 'the Lord is risen', then our present tears will yet be irradiated with hope.

Graham Bradbeer
Chaplain

Beyond the door there's peace I'm sure,
And I know there'll be no more
tears in heaven.

"Tears In Heaven"

Eric Clapton and Will Jennings