Signs of a Sunflower

A few weeks ago, I looked out over the wide, green fields at our Acton Main campus. So much life was sprouting — grass, clover, the future beginnings of an orchard. As I pulled out of the parking lot and headed down the long drive, I stopped suddenly. In the middle of all that green, one bright sunflower stood tall. This sunflower hadn’t been planted. It wasn’t intended. Yet there it was — rising, strong, and basking in the sunshine.

Since I was a little girl, sunflowers have been my favorite flower. They are bold and bright, but what has always struck me most is their joyful strength. Sunflowers persevere. They turn toward the light. They rise in unexpected places. For me, they’ve become a sign — a reminder that when things feel uncertain or when I need assurance, growth is still happening, strength is still rising, the sunflower shines the path. Over the years, sunflowers have appeared just when I’ve needed them most. Sometimes small on a sticker, sometimes large on a billboard. Sunflowers shine.

Now, sunflowers are appearing at Acton. Not just in the field, but in the studios. I see sunflowers in learners who are persevering through challenges — rising leaders who step forward to guide their teams in a lip dub rehearsal, a learner who keeps working at a difficult math problem even after three attempts, or a younger hero who tries, fails, and then tries again at those monkey bars until success blooms.

But here is what makes the sunflowers at Acton different: they don’t grow alone. A sunflower in the wild depends on water, soil, and sunshine to thrive. At Acton, your learner has something just as essential — fellow travelers. Learners supporting one another are like nourishing rain, grounding soil, and the light that helps each hero rise. This is how perseverance takes root: not in isolation, but in a community where learners are both growing and giving strength to one another.

Today, I saw a whole bouquet beginning to bloom. At Spark Land, our youngest learners held their first public Town Hall — their second governance discussion, but this time witnessed by parents during Coffee Connect. A sunflower stood tall and guided the group through the agenda. The secretary stretched their petals, and one by one, learners stepped to the podium to share their opinions and ideas on how the studio could move forward. It was a moment of perseverance, courage, and growth — a bouquet of sunflowers rising together.

Perseverance is not easy. It asks for grit. It stretches character. It means holding steady when the tug of frustration whispers, Give up. But like the sunflower, your learner is learning to rise, to turn toward the light, and to keep growing even when the path isn’t easy.

As you think about your own week, what signs of sunflowers do you notice in your learner’s journey? How do you see perseverance sprouting — in a chore completed, a story practiced, or a problem worked through? What sunflower signs might guide you too — signs that it’s time to slow down, to rise again, or to cast your own vision toward the light?

At Acton, perseverance is part of the journey. Trying, failing, trying again — this is how character blooms. Sunflowers are the sign that growth is happening, often in the most unexpected places.