Our Lives Are

What We Make of Them

The Writings of
John Corlette
(abridged in 24 pages)
2 JohnCorlette.com
With appreciation to
all who gave their time to
compile this condensed
(abridged) collection of
John Corlette's writings.
The photos came from
Aiglon 25 (created in 1974
by Patrick Roberts).
Special thanks to Norman
Perryman for giving his
permission to include
several of his paintings.
Words in normal type are
JC’s writings. All other
notes and comments are in
italics. The information
about the sponsors on the
last page is in another font.
You can download the
ebook at JohnCorlette.com
and pass it along to
parents, students,
educators and
directors of schools.
Contents
1: The Speech (July 1973)
2: The Exercise
3: The Aiglon Meditation
4: Other Writings
The Rule Book
5: About JC
6: What’s Next?
Join the JC Society
See also myAiglon.com for
more stories about JC.
Please turn to Chapter 2
and participate in the
exercise. We also invite
you to send us your
memories of JC for the next
project, Conversations
with JC (Volume 1).
This document is a
condensed version
prepared for distribution at
Veni Vidi Roma, the
fabulous gathering
organized in part by Sandro
Corsini (‘75). Bravo,
Sandro! We wish you a
mega-attendance of alumni
in May 2011.
We plan to compile and
print the unabridged version
of this book sometime in
2012, allowing for time to
search through archives for
more writings of JC.
Abridged Writings of John Corlette 3

John C. Corlette was born John Hubert Christian Cor-

lette on 21 June 1911 and died 9 December 1977. He
was an English architect who, in 1949, founded the
private English-style boarding school Aiglon College in
Switzerland. The school is registered as a not-for-profit
charitable institution, with an international student
intake. Corlette was a former pupil ("Stoic") of Stowe
School in Buckinghamshire, and a former teacher at
Gordonstoun, a private school in Scotland. He included
some of the latter school's educational ideas in the
formation of Aiglon. Corlette's death in 1977 came after
an extended illness. His legacy is the school that he
founded.

To see a slice of what life at the school was like, search

on YouTube the following title: Aiglon College 1971
(showing a school film produced by Erik Friedl).
4 JohnCorlette.com

1: The Speech (July 1973)

THE GOAL OF EDUCATION AT AIGLON
An address by the director given at the graduation
ceremonies and prize giving in Exeter Hall, 3 July 1973
Some of you probably without thinking too much about
it, will have assumed that the goal of education is the
acquisition of a body of knowledge which will enable
you to pass the examinations set by universities,
technical colleges or other such bodies. You believe
that success in these examinations may enable you to
earn a better living and make more money so that you
can more effectively satisfy your physical needs and
desires and such other needs and desires as can be
satisfied by these means.
Whilst we agree that the ability to earn a good
living is a necessary and important accomplishment we
do not regard this as the goal of education but as a by-
product.
We believe that the goal of education is, or
should be, the development of the spiritual man, that is
of that part of each one of us which, with development
and training, is capable of a vision or direct
apprehension of the purpose of life, of the true nature of
ourselves, of the world in which we live and of such
other worlds or states of being as may exist besides.
If we are able to achieve such illumination, the
business of everyday life and its problems will be taken
care of as a by-product, and such physical wealth as we
may need for our passage through this life will follow the
spiritual wealth which we have worked to achieve.
Hence, although we can and do and should work
to equip ourselves as efficiently as possible with the
tools necessary for earning our living, we shall do this
with more success, and at the same time achieve for
ourselves lasting happiness and peace of mind, if we
set as our primary goal the acquisition of spiritual wealth
or the development of the spiritual man.
Abridged Writings of John Corlette 5

The organisation and practice of any educational

establishment should therefore be such as to recognise
this as the goal, and such as to contribute towards its
achievement.
So, if an educator is to have any success in the
accomplishment of his mission, he must consider not
only the basic aim of the development of the spiritual
man, but also the nature of man and the practical
means whereby he may help him towards his goal.
Now, man's nature is complex, but for the sake
of simplicity and to provide a practical basis for action it
can be divided into four main aspects, each of which
influences and reacts to all the others. They are the
physical, intellectual, emotional and spiritual.
Each of these four main aspects, if well
nourished and well exercised, can help us to develop
our spiritual side, help us to perceive truth which, as we
approach it more nearly, will bring us closer to
perfection or closer to the Eternal One, to identity with
cosmic intelligence, cosmic energy, creative principle or
Ultimate God according as you like to describe it. This
is the ultimate destiny of us all and the purpose of our
lives here on earth.
It follows that any education which helps to
prepare man to fulfill the purpose of his life on earth,
must nourish and exercise all four aspects of his nature
and regard them of equal importance in the
development of the whole man and in the satisfaction of
his profoundest aspirations. The joy and happiness
which all men seek can be attained only in this way.
This is the path to self-realisation and through this to
God-realisation which is our ultimate goal.
All other satisfactions are either a means to this end or
are a mistaken attempt to attain happiness by
concentrating on one of these aspects, or perhaps two,
and neglecting the others. This results in imbalance and
dis-harmony and dis-ease.
So, how, in practice, and in a school, and with
the material, human and otherwise at our disposal, do
6 JohnCorlette.com

we set about this task?

Nothing, or very little, we do at Aiglon is
haphazard, or done because other people do it or
somebody has said it ought to be done that
way. Everything we do has been carefully thought out
with reference to our basic aim and developed from first
principles, and whenever new problems arise, we seek
their solution within the same context. We ask
ourselves, "Is the solution proposed consistent with our
basic aim and principles?"
Since this point is not always well understood by
those associated with the school, be they parents, staff,
students or outsiders, it is perhaps worth giving a few
examples of how it works out in our practice here.
For example, taking the physical aspect, we start
from the premise that the body is the temple of the
spirit. This can be stated in different ways. It is the
house which "we" inhabit during the short span of our
life on earth. It is not "us." It is an instrument which
"we" use to express the aspects of truth as "we"
perceive them.
Therefore, the more perfect the body is as an
instrument for this purpose, the greater will be its
contribution towards the attainment of our goal. We
should therefore learn to care for it, nourish it, and
exercise it in a way which will help it to function in the
best possible way for this purpose.
So we have Morning PT, so called. This should
be a few minutes gentle jog-trot or the equivalent whose
purpose is to stimulate the circulation of the blood after
a night of relative stagnation, so that it may carry away
for elimination some of the toxins accumulated during
rest, and at the same time, circulate fresh oxygen from
the lungs to all the cells in the body, thus helping to
keep them in optimum condition.
Then we have the cold shower. The skin is one
of the major organs of elimination of toxic wastes from
the body, and also acts as a kind of thermostat or
controller of the body temperature. To fulfill these tasks
Abridged Writings of John Corlette 7

the skin must be kept in top condition.

Owing to the artificial kind of life that man today
leads and the clothes he wears, the skin does not have
the constant practice of having to respond to the forces
of nature such as heat, cold and wet which in more
primitive societies kept his skin healthy.
It is therefore necessary to do this deliberately,
hence the cold shower to stimulate the operation of the
thermostat for the control of body temperature, to
stimulate the irrigation of the glandular and lymphatic
systems and to stimulate the circulation of the blood.
With regard to sports, games and expedi-
tions. Because of their value in developing and training
different aspects of the character as well as for their
value in the development of the body and the
maintenance of health, every student is required during
the course of the year (unless some medical reason
prevents it) to:
a) Take part in at least one team game.
b) Ski during the winter and take part in ski expeditions.
c) Take part in expeditions on foot when snow and
climatic conditions permit.
d) Follow an appropriate course of gymnastics.
These physical activities contribute also to the
intellectual, emotional and spiritual development of the
student. Intelligence is required to perform physical
activities well. Considerable emotional satisfaction can
also be had from them, from the physical pleasure of
doing, as well as from the satisfaction derived from
successful performance, and from the companionship
with and service to others. All the foregoing plus the
contact with nature also make their contribution to the
spiritual development of the individual.
Now Food and Drink. These are of the greatest
importance, but owing to the bad feeding habits of
modern civilisation and the resultant falsifying of natural
instincts they are very difficult to handle correctly, quite
apart from the difficulty of finding good produce, and
cooks and housekeepers who understand what is
8 JohnCorlette.com

required and are able and willing to carry out the policy.
Ideally raw materials for meals should be fresh
and biologically grown without the use of pesticides or
chemical fertilisers. They should then be eaten raw
where possible or conservatively cooked to preserve
the nutritive elements in the food, especially in relation
to vitamins, mineral salts and trace elements.
All refined foods such as white bread, white rice,
white sugar, and anything made with or containing them
should be eliminated from the diet as well as stimulating
or toxic materials such as coffee, tea, chocolate, alcohol
(including wine or beer) and "soft" and carbonated
drinks, all of which contain sugar or chemical com-
pounds of various kinds.
Efforts should be made to dissuade students
from absorbing these things, candy and gum, between
meals and when not in the school. Since most children
are brought up to value those unhealthy substances,
the task is not an easy one.
A pure blood stream is the greatest defence
against disease both of body and of mind. The old tag
"mens sana in corpore sane" - a healthy mind in a
healthy body - has a great deal of truth in it.
Another of our basic principles is that we believe
that it is the business of those who direct the school,
first to set the standards which they believe the students
should be aiming at, and state them in no equivocal
fashion, and secondly that they should provide a
method of grading for each aspect which will enable the
student to know what progress the school authorities
think he is making. This grading should, if necessary
and where possible, be accompanied by explanations
which will help the student to understand his
assessment and plan his future progress.
And so we have our different grading systems
concerning the activities which are designed to help in
the development of the four aspects of man's
nature. First we set standards for the students to aim
at, then by grading, we let them know how we think they
Abridged Writings of John Corlette 9

are doing. The object of grading is not to stimulate

competition with others but to let the student know what
progress he is making.
Hence we have a grading system for studies,
academic and artistic and practical, another for sports,
games and the adventure training programs or
expeditions, and a third for "the whole man." This last is
of course the key one and combines all the others in its
assessment.
It charts the course of the development of the
boy or girl as regards his character, sense of
responsibility, maturity and general development in
relation to the basic standards of conduct and morality
which we lay down and which are derived, as far as we
are able to understand them, from the teachings of
great teachers.
This assessment has come to be known here as
the Rank System, and is absolutely basic to the idea of
education at Aiglon. The term is, I think, unfortunate and
misleading, with its military overtones, and perhaps
someone can think of a more felicitous way of
describing it.
It may be objected that an assessment of this
kind must necessarily be subjective and therefore
unfair. Of course it is subjective, but so are all our
judgments, except possibly in the case of mathematics
where it can be argued that two will make four
regardless of what anybody thinks about it. However,
this is no reason for teachers to avoid the responsibility
of judging their pupils' work and progress, moreover this
is precisely how promotion is accorded to us in real life
outside school.
We get promoted in our business or occupation
and our salary increased precisely as we are able to
convince our superiors in the hierarchy of our merits
with reference to their requirements. The exception to
this is of course if we are members of a trade union, in
which case, as things are today, our salaries are
increased, not according to our merit, but according to
10 JohnCorlette.com

the seriousness of the threats with which we are able to

menace our employers. There have been attempts by
students in some schools to follow this example by
threatening the school authorities in various ways if they
do not give them what they want. This could not
happen at Aiglon for the very simple reason that we
would rather close the school than abandon our
principles. I hope these examples will give you some
idea of how we arrive at the various practices which we
employ at Aiglon.
Given our aim of the education of the whole man
and our belief that the lynch pin of this is the
development of the spiritual man, we believe that the
solution of this problem ultimately rests in the
development of the spiritual life of the individual,
This can be nourished through many channels.
First and foremost, of course, come the various world
religions, the various denominations of the Christian
Church, Judaism, Buddhism, Mohammedism, Jainism,
Hinduism -- to name some of the principal ones.
Then there is today an increasing number of
groups all seeking the spiritual life along more or less
independent lines, some owning allegiance to or at any
rate inspiration from, one of the great religions or great
Masters, others owning no specific allegiance but
drawing inspiration from the wisdom of the ages
wherever it may appear. Other means for the
development of the spiritual man lie in such techniques
as contemplation, meditation, prayer and the growing
insights of psychology and parapsychology.
Intimate contact with nature, too, is important,
and a realisation of our living relationship with it. Hence
our adventure training programme.
The development of sensitivity to and the
practice of art in all its forms provides a very positive
channel for the development of the spirit; that is through
music, painting, sculpture and all forms of craft -- to all
of which of course we attach great importance here.
Abridged Writings of John Corlette 11

Absolutely essential too is a positive and loving

relationship with all other people regardless of their
origin, background or beliefs, and a positive and loving
relationship with everything in the world and in the
universe around us. This was after all essentially the
message which Jesus Christ brought to us. At Aiglon
we try, imperfectly no doubt, but always trying to do
better, to put these ideas into practice.
So, next time you think something we do is stupid and
won't help you to pass your exams or get a better job,
just stop and remember that the education which we
offer, whilst it does
this, is designed to go
far beyond it, to
develop the whole of
you and not just a
part, to help you to
become truly and
intensely alive, to
help you to a
knowledge of and
understanding of that
part of you which I
call the spiritual part,
by attention whose
dictates you can
attain to much more
than success in
examinations and a
good job, that is to
lasting happiness.

J.C. Corlette
3 July 1973

Editor’s note: The school is a non-denominational, non-

sectarian school that accepts followers of all religions.
12 JohnCorlette.com

2: The Exercise
By David Rhodes
The goal is to define the essence of the Corlette system
and invite the next generation to learn about the man
and his methods. Imagine you had never heard of or
knew John Corlette. Imagine, also, that your memories
of your student days have been wiped out, except for
the barest details like the Swiss village Chesières, the
O/A level exams, camping in the mountains, etc. Let's
assume, then, that you have no EMOTIONAL recollect-
tion of the educational value of your time in Chesières,
whether it was a rewarding time in your life or not - all
those things which loyal alumni feel so strongly when
they reminisce. What's the point of this exercise?
You have in your possession a copy of Corlette’s 1973
graduation address in which he sets out the goals of his
educational philosophy. It's the longest document
produced by JC and it can give us insight into what he
was trying to do in setting up his school. You are not
allowed to rely on your memories of the man himself
because they have been erased. You read this
document with a detached, analytical eye. You are
looking for those educational insights that strike you as
deeply valuable and relevant to today's young people,
in particular for your own children, godchildren or
friends' children. Try to keep your sentiments and
feelings out of it.

You are allowed to choose only two insights from this

document that strike you as the most important for
today's world. Step 1: Re-draft them in your own
words, in a way that makes them sound less archaic
and more in line with today's jargon. Step 2: Explain
your reasons for your choice of these two insights.

You are now allowed to re-connect with your emotions

about the school. They come flooding back, as if you're
recovering from a bout of emotional amnesia. Read
Abridged Writings of John Corlette 13

again your choice of the two most important principles

and the way you re-stated them in modern terms. Are
you still happy with your choice, in light of your vivid
emotional memories? And finally, ask yourself whether
your feelings about the value of your education and
your choice of the two most important JC principles are
the feelings of (a) the young person you were when you
were sent away to a Swiss boarding school, or (b) the
feelings of the older, more mature person you have now
become, or both. When you have done all this and
you're completely happy with your response, please
send it to JohnCorlette@gmail.com and David Rhodes
hilaryanddavid@gmail.com.

(If you didn't attend the school before 1977, you can still
read the speech, complete steps 1 and 2 and email the
result. You will be invited to join the JC Society and we
will seek your permission to post your analysis of the
speech on the website.)

Some comments: Here are some excerpted

comments that the JC Society has received. Read the
complete statements online (JohnCorlette.com). We
hope you are inspired to participate in the exercise:

Building Character and Body: JC points out the

objective, behind the ranking, was to let students know
what progress he or she was making. It was not
structured to be a competition among students. The
rank system leveled the playing field within the
community and set goals for students to progress,
judged by the staff and their fellow students.

The second element I consider important was JC’s

concern for good nutrition. My guess is his choice of
organic fruit and produce related to his own delicate
health. I also think a respect for food was developed
through the in-house dining system. A staff member sat
at the table to ensure students ate some of all the
14 JohnCorlette.com

dishes which would include vegetables! There was

discussion at table and at the end of the meal the
students would be dismissed. This was not an
assembly line buffet which can lead to bad eating habits
and encourage a social grouping at meal times of self-
selected students. Noel Thompson ’70, distributor of
artisan olive oil at CampoBelloDoro.com

Character: I'm all for the reinstatement of a ranking

system that involves "Character Feedback." With all of
its poor application through time, maybe it's the
application process that should be adjusted, not the
concept of whether it exists. Two suggestions about
which I've thought include:
1) Not referring to rank changes as "promotions" or
"demotions" but rather as "evolutions," and;
2) Not ranking everyone but rather only 20% of the
student body. I've learned that it is only 20% that "do."

In every community in which I've lived, and Corlette

thought of the world as a community, it is the same 20%
that do all the volunteering and maybe another 20%
that do the "leading." I don't know what the ranks
should be named, and how one works towards
recognition, but that is for the system to figure out.
Good luck to that person that tries.

In my opinion, Corlette was also driven by what he

disliked. One thing he disliked was War. He took
things that generated conflict and turned them into an
understanding. He achieved this by concentrating on
the positive and turning it into a philosophy of
education. Reflecting on it, his conversion process was
a remarkable achievement. Pulling out the essence of
JC's thoughts and communicating them so that they are
understood in today's world is an important and
valuable task. One challenge that I see is communi-
cating across the cross cultural differences of under-
standing that exist even within the Anglo-Saxon world.
Abridged Writings of John Corlette 15

The objective is to reach agreement about JC's

objective so that it becomes understood by Russians,
Germans, Iranians, British, Indonesians, Americans and
others. John Vornle 1968-76 johnvornle@gmail.com

God is Our Strength: Although being an ignorant,

selfish rebel most of my time at Aiglon there was
always this openness to spiritual searching in
meditation, in discussion and in wearing a blazer
that said "God is my strength" that permeated daily
life there. I personally believe this is the core of
Aiglon's success. It goes beyond knowledge and
encouraged us to search deeper through inward
contemplation, exposure to such visual beauty every
day and the challenge of adventure through expedition.
On expedition one unconsciously becomes aware
of the inner joy of companionship, simple food and
a hot drink, the warmth of a fire, and the stars at
night. A priceless education that guided me on a
journey to a place where I have found contentment,
peace and joy. If I had not had a taste of them at
Aiglon, I would probably not have known what to look
for. Jeremy McWilliam ’76 capelgors@btinternet.com

International Perspective: This is one of the core

values of Aiglon that remained with me thanks to David
Rhodes: it was crucial to learn to get along with all
different nationalities, creeds, personalities, mental
abilities, apparent wealth and status. These values
were taught at home but I struggled with them.
David’s proposed exercise is another way to get
students to learn about Aiglon values. A non-graded but
corrected essay could be written about what current
students value the most at Aiglon each year in their
English classes.
One by-product of an Aiglon education is that no matter
what else we may have gotten out of our expeditions
we all developed a lifelong reverence for Nature and its
16 JohnCorlette.com

awesome beauty. I would propose a yearly contest for

students in which they could share the creative
products of their experiences whether in essay,
photographic or artistic format visible to all in a display
in the Meditation Hall. My proposal is to get Aiglon
students to actively invest in their education while they
are there, not just when they mature to the age when
they understand long-term consequences, so they may
appreciate the immediate worth of their education and
still continue to reap its benefits throughout their lives.
Elaine De Martin-Webster ‘76 edemartin@aol.com
Morning Meditations Were Important: It was not the
structure or procedure of Morning Meditation that I
respect: It was the effort to go beyond academics and
attempt “the transfer of culture” to the next generation.
JC was aware of the teenager’s limited capacity to
absorb information that might appear to be “boring.”
Morning Meditation was one way to sneak up on the
typical teenager who didn’t want to be educated.
S. Conger stevecongeralpina@gmail.com

Photo by J.M. Schlemmer, taken from Aiglon 25 (written by

Patrick Roberts, distributed in 1974).
Abridged Writings of John Corlette 17

3: The Aiglon Meditation

I have many times been asked for an explanation of the
Aiglon Meditation, why we have them and how we
conduct them, both by those called to lead them, and by
others interested in the idea. The following, therefore,
is a brief explanation which I hope may be helpful to
those interested.
The Meditation takes the place of morning
prayers or morning assembly in other schools. It has
been practised at Aiglon since the school's foundation in
1949. I regard it as the centre of the life of the school,
and the point from which its whole character and sense
of purpose stems. Members of the staff are therefore
required to attend at least twice a week, and many
attend every day if they can. All the boys and girls,
regardless of creed, are required to attend.
At the beginning of each scholastic year I give
an explanation of the nature and purpose of the
Meditation and go through the 'drill' of physical and
mental relaxation and of placing the mind in an attitude
of quietness and contemplation. There are, of course,
days when the Meditation 'takes' better than other days,
and periods when individuals are more susceptible to its
influence than others, but this is what one would expect.
Leaders of the Meditation should be chosen with
care as not everyone can do it successfully. A suitable
senior student can occasionally be invited to take a
Meditation.
In the notes which follow, I hope you will not
think that I consider that I myself come up to the
standards I here lay down. I am only too aware of my
own shortcomings in this as in other things, but one can
only make progress if one has clearly fixed in one's
mind the goal at which one is aiming.
Purpose: To bring boys and girls into direct contact with
spiritual influences so that they may the better know
and understand God.
Form: The Hall door is shut at 8.03 and boys and girls
18 JohnCorlette.com

take their places; 8.05 a.m. the person taking Meditation

walks up to the platform, which is the signal for silence.
Staff should take their places by 5 minutes to 8.
1st Silence: After taking his place on the platform, the
leader should hold a silence for a minimum of 1 minute
up to about 3 minutes, 2 minutes being a fair average.
He should not speak until absolute stillness has
supervened and been held for long enough to be 'felt'.
Talk: The purpose of the talk is to drop one, single
pregnant idea into the silence which precedes and
follows it. It should not occupy more than at the outside
10 minutes, including silence, and can be no less than
one minute. The idea can be a quite simple one. The
leader may stand for the talk.
Alternative to talk: Once a week, on Saturday, a
'Musical Meditation' is held. The talk is then replaced
by a brief but significant phrase followed by a suitable
piece of music lasting not less than 6 minutes and not
more than 10 minutes. The music should be followed by
a second silence as usual. Finally as the leader
prepares to leave the platform he will announce the title
of the music and the composer.
2nd Silence: This should be held for a minimum of 2
minutes up to about 5 minutes. The longer period
should be aimed at. After a brief period of silence the
assembly may appear restless. If the silence is
persisted in, this period will usually be passed through,
and a much deeper and more vital silence achieved the
other side of it. The leader may sit for the silence.
The Silence. The central and most important
part of the exercise is the silence. For most people only
when the mind and body are stilled can the voice of
God be heard, or, to put it differently, can we pick up the
direct signals concerning the truth about everything
which are constantly being sent out but to which we are
normally insensitive. This is what meditation is, laying
ourselves open to receive the truth about something,
direct from the source and origin of all truth. Hence, the
first place taken by the silence.
Abridged Writings of John Corlette 19

The Talk. The purpose of the talk is to indicate

to the assembly a subject for meditation, very briefly,
very simply, in the fewest possible words. It is not a
lecture. It is extremely difficult to do well. To boil it down
to one idea 5 minutes in length may take 2 hours of
preparation and hard thought, whereas a 15 minute talk
or a talk of a discursive nature can be done with little or
no preparation and fails completely of its purpose. It is
better to have no talk at all than one which is too long or
too discursive. The silence alone, without any talk,
would be more creative, provided that the leader is
willing to listen, but the students are not willing to be
bored and their powers of concentration are limited.
Thus talks that are over-long or over-complex defeat the
purpose. It should also be remembered that they are
required to listen every morning.
Suggestions: Stand or sit straight in a relaxed,
easy and natural attitude. Do not bend down in an
attitude of prayer or homage. The attitude should be
one of quiet thoughtfulness, contemplation, meditation,
and a recollection of the presence of God or the power
of truth in the room. Project this attitude into the room.
Delivery. Most people, even those accustomed
to speaking in public, do so very badly, and other
people are usually reluctant to point out their faults,
which are often simple and easily corrected. The
following faults are common and very easily put right:
1 Speaking too softly: this puts a strain on the
audience. They miss certain key words and give up.
2 Speaking too loudly or harshly: this is irritating and
inaesthetic.
3 Speaking the stressed syllables loudly and the un-
stressed syllables softly so that the words are difficult to
identify. Result: audience strain.
4 Monotony. The tone and pitch of the voice varying
within only very narrow limits, or repeating the same
sequence of rise and fall, so that such modulations of
the voice as there may be lose any significance. The
voice should be used as a musical instrument and the
20 JohnCorlette.com

speed, tonality, emphasis and phrasing very carefully

studied so as to enhance the meaning of the words or
bring out the significance of the passage.
5 Diction. This is frequently appalling, the words being
slurred, blurred, or swallowed. Each syllable must be
slowly and independently articulated regardless of
whether it is stressed or not. You can then be heard
without strain at the back of the room even when
speaking comparatively softly. This allows much more
room for dynamic variation.
6 Speaking is an art, and should be treated with all the
care and thought an art demands.
To sum up, remember that the purpose of the morning
assembly is to develop the spiritual life of those taking
part, that the means employed is silent contemplation or
meditation, and that the talk is to be regarded simply as
an aid to this by providing the mind with a creative idea
to work on as a start. The talk should therefore be short
and designed to present only one idea to the mind for
contemplation. It should be expressed with as much
lucidity, simplicity and artistry as the leader can
summon.
Since the silence is the central part of the
exercise, the art of producing and holding a creative
silence should be studied. J. Corlette From The
Aiglon Meditation: An Anthology (1989)

Our Lives Are What We Make of Them

Within a few years all you people will be leaving school
and setting out on a new chapter in your lives, and it is
not going to be as different as you think.
However, this is not what I want to talk to you
about this morning. What I want to draw your attention
to is the fact that an awful lot of so-called grown-ups,
many of whom are really only children with grown-up
bodies: a lot of these grown-ups spend a lot of time
complaining about their own lives, how uninteresting
their lives are, how they never meet any interesting
people, how dull their jobs are, how small the pay is,
Abridged Writings of John Corlette 21

how silly their wives are, how idiotic their children, how
unreliable their cars, how tasteless their food.
Well, all this may be true, and a lot more, but if
they are complaining to other people, and invariably
they do, they are complaining to the wrong person.
They should be complaining to themselves, for they are
themselves to blame.
Our lives are what we make of them, and if they
are dull and uninteresting, frustrated, colourless and
unsatisfying, it is because we make them so.
Our lives are what we make of them, and it is no
good blaming those mysterious people 'they' at whose
door we like to lay so many of our misfortunes. It is no
good blaming God, who is only too ready to help us to
put our lives in order and to see us enjoying them if we
will let Him. As Shakespeare says in Julius Caesar, 'the
fault, dear Brutus, is not in our stars, but in ourselves,
that we are underlings.'
What then must we do to lead full and fruitful
lives about which we will not wish to complain? The
first thing (and this is the first step in being really grown-
up) is to understand that our lives are what we make
them, and the credit for a good life is ours, just as the
blame for a bad one is ours also.
The second thing is to know ourselves. We are
not all the same, we are all different. We have not all got
it in us to be leaders, nor should we have. Most of us
will be followers of one sort or another, and to be a good
follower takes just as much character and courage as to
be a leader. We have not all got the kind of mind that
makes a scientist, the sensitivity which makes an artist,
or the co-ordination and quick reactions that make a
sportsman. But there is no one who has not got
qualities, gifts and talents of one sort or another, and we
must find out and know what our own talents are.
If the second thing we must do if we are to lead
full and fruitful lives is to know ourselves, the third thing
we must do is be ourselves.
It is astonishing how few people have the
22 JohnCorlette.com

courage and self-confidence really to be themselves.

Yet, unless they are, they can never have full, fruitful
and happy lives; for a full, fruitful and happy life is a life
of self-fulfillment, a life in which the qualities, gifts and
talents we possess and which are our own, are
developed and used by us to the full. So many people
spend most of their time and energy trying to be
somebody else, trying to keep up with the Joneses.
Never mind about the Joneses, they are somebody
else. You can never be like them. Do not try. Be
yourself. You will be a much better person than you will
ever be by trying to be like someone else. Know
yourself, and, with God's help, fulfill the nature of your
being; be yourself. Our lives are what we make of
them.

4: Other Writings
We present parts of the Rule Book that might be linked to
general principles in JC's system of education.
Rules and Ranks: The following are certain specific
rules which govern the community and you are
expected to obey them.
If you observe these, it does not mean you can do
anything else you like. You are expected to behave with
common sense and to observe the customs of the
community, even if they are not written down.
Guide to Conduct
1. Consider the comfort and convenience of other
people. This is the hallmark of courtesy.
2. Don't make unnecessary or exaggerated noise.
3. Don't draw attention to yourselves. Never be
loud or vulgar.
4. Show restraint in your dress.
5. See that your clothes are neat and clean and
appropriate to the occasion.
Abridged Writings of John Corlette 23

6. Don't loiter or lounge about or look sloppy.

7. Always make way for others and defer to
anyone older than yourself.
8. Notice if anyone else is in difficulty and, if you
think you can be of service, offer quietly to help.
9. Show respect to everyone you meet, regardless
of their position, nationality, color or religion.

5: About JC
By Norman Perryman (Head of Art, 1966-73)
normanperryman.com
In 1972 I proposed that JC sit for a portrait and he
agreed. It was a fascinating challenge to paint this
amazingly complex personality. I think he felt flattered
and he may have enjoyed the process more than I did,
as I wrestled with form and expression. He believed I
was an “old soul”, so we had some great conversations
on a similar wavelength. JC had a handsome tan when
he was in good health, but I saw his personality as
olive-green. I observed two distinct halves in his face:
on his right side the calm gaze of a philosopher, mystic,
visionary. On his left side a variety of conflicting
expressions, the clever schemer/architect, a bit of a
dandy, the sensual upper lip that would lift on one side
as he formulated an esoteric concept, the sense of
humour with the wrinkles around those pale greenish-
grey eyes, large ears and an extraordinarily thin neck
and narrow shoulders.
Try laying your hand
over one half of the
face, then the other.
These are two
different men (aren’t
we all?).
More can be found online:
myAiglon.com
24 JohnCorlette.com

6: What’s Next?
Invitation to join the JC Society
Now it’s your turn. Read the speech again and do the
exercise (created by David Rhodes). How relevant is JC’s
philosophy of education today? What might be done to
bring some of the elements “up to date” with recent
research? For students and teachers who worked at JC’s
school in the 1960s and 1970s: What worked? What
didn’t work?

The JC Society aims to record the memories of people who

knew John Corlette. Let’s capture the spirit of his vision
(because JC did not write widely about his methods) and
share the materials with everyone on the planet. Please
send your comments to JohnCorlette@gmail.com.

An expanded draft version of this document is available for

viewing on scribd.com with photos to accompany the
writings. After more people share documents prepared by
JC, a fuller collection of writings by JC can be compiled in a
150-page document, distributed by a print-on-demand
publisher. If you have letters, memos or other writings by
JC, please write to johncorlette@gmail.com. With special
thanks to Joyce Lowe, Christopher Reynolds and the many
others who have shared their memories and helped JC
create a special community of learning.

Future projects: If you knew JC, please write about what

you talked about with JC and give a summary of what he said
to you. We want to compile collections of “Conversations
with JC.” If you don't have time to write the memory, call us
so we can make a quick transcription of your thoughts.
+1 954 646 8246 The JC Society

Find products and services on MyAiglon.com. Join the alumni

group (people who attended or worked at the school, by invitation
at facebook.com/group.php?gid=2204660527). Distribution of this
document was sponsored by VisualandActive.com,
CofradiaSchool.com, EveryoneIsHere.com, GuideOnTheSide.com,
BuildingInternationalBridges.org, “Let’s Talk About JC” gatherings
(conference calls held on Skype), skyeskyns.co.uk,
capelgors.co.uk, impresaidf.com, meadowcroftwines.com and
CampoBelloDoro.com. See a school curriculum inspired by
Abridged Writings of John Corlette 25

Corlette at QBESchool.com and QBESchools.com.