OMG, Mr. Arthur is back, and I'm finally hearing him sing tonight for the first time this year! We saw him cocky-flying around the neighbor's yard on Saturday; saw him again yesterday in her tree. And now...finally...he's singing to beat the band! Oh, how I love mockingbirds. Wonder how many of our cats he dive-bombs this year.
Another sign of hope, to be sure!
Monday, March 30, 2009
Sunday, March 29, 2009
Indeed
"This morning the water lilies are no less lovely, I think,
than the lilies of Monet.
And I do not want anymore to be useful, to be docile, to lead
children out of the fields into the text
of civility, to teach them that they are (they are not) better
than the grass."
from "Rain," by Mary Oliver
Grading
All day. Most of the weekend. Persuasive letters in block format about banned books. Letters written by sophomores. Some are dreadful. I am so tired of fake writing. So I made a new assignment. They had to freewrite about what makes them angry. From there, they had write about how they would change what makes them angry, had they the authority or power or money to do so. They also had to determine who does have the authority or power or money to make those changes. And that naturally led to a persuasive letter, but this time they actually have to mail it. Amazing how seriously they're taking this assignment. It's for real. They want to make sure they have the right ethos so they don't screw up their argument before they even begin it. I don't think I'll be assigning banned book letters next year. I don't know what kind of fallout we might encounter from this, but we're moving forward as carefully as possible.
I'm ready for spring break. CO, here I come.
I'm ready for spring break. CO, here I come.
Sunday, March 22, 2009
Friday Five (but on Sunday): Signs of Hope
Friday Five: Signs of Hope
As posted at RevGalBlogPals by Songbird:
My beloved speaks and says to me: “Arise, my love, my fair one, and come away; for now the winter is past, the rain is over and gone. The flowers appear on the earth; the time of singing has come, and the voice of the turtledove is heard in our land. The fig tree puts forth its figs, and the vines are in blossom; they give forth fragrance. Arise, my love, my fair one, and come away. (Song of Solomon 2:10-13, NRSV)
In the late, late winter, as the snow begins to recede here in Maine, we begin to look almost desperately for signs of spring, signs of hope that the weather has turned and a new day is on the horizon. For those of us in the Northern Hemisphere, Easter and Spring twine inextricably, the crocuses and daffodils peeking through the Earth as we await the risen Christ.
Share with us five signs of hope that you can see today or have experienced in the past.
1. Every year when the jacaranda tree by my classroom begins to bloom, I know that there is hope, and that I will survive the year intact, and that summer is indeed coming.
2. Strangely enough, the dawning of Lent is filled with hope.
3. The warming light of comprehension in a student's eyes.
4. Each spring, our backyard lights afire with a yellow sea of what some would call weeds but that I call beauty.
5. Every time I put pen to paper in search of poetry or truth, it is a hopeful sign.
Bonus: Every time I read a poem by Mary Oliver, my core fills with hope and other resonant emotions. (Her new book, Evidence, is amazing. Just...amazing.)
As posted at RevGalBlogPals by Songbird:
My beloved speaks and says to me: “Arise, my love, my fair one, and come away; for now the winter is past, the rain is over and gone. The flowers appear on the earth; the time of singing has come, and the voice of the turtledove is heard in our land. The fig tree puts forth its figs, and the vines are in blossom; they give forth fragrance. Arise, my love, my fair one, and come away. (Song of Solomon 2:10-13, NRSV)
In the late, late winter, as the snow begins to recede here in Maine, we begin to look almost desperately for signs of spring, signs of hope that the weather has turned and a new day is on the horizon. For those of us in the Northern Hemisphere, Easter and Spring twine inextricably, the crocuses and daffodils peeking through the Earth as we await the risen Christ.
Share with us five signs of hope that you can see today or have experienced in the past.
1. Every year when the jacaranda tree by my classroom begins to bloom, I know that there is hope, and that I will survive the year intact, and that summer is indeed coming.
2. Strangely enough, the dawning of Lent is filled with hope.
3. The warming light of comprehension in a student's eyes.
4. Each spring, our backyard lights afire with a yellow sea of what some would call weeds but that I call beauty.
5. Every time I put pen to paper in search of poetry or truth, it is a hopeful sign.
Bonus: Every time I read a poem by Mary Oliver, my core fills with hope and other resonant emotions. (Her new book, Evidence, is amazing. Just...amazing.)
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