I had another great day at Teacher’s Convention. Made another contact for my dissertation process. It is quite interesting the willingness of people to help.
Harry Russ who provides the blog wrote this beautiful poem. I finished reading Margaret Wheatley‘s book, So Far From Home. She referred several times to human hearts and their capacity for love and kindness. Parker Palmer, in his book Healing the Heart of Democracy, referred to the heart being able to hold so much. Harry’s Russ’ poem reminded me of their writing and I think he is on to something: the heart and the spirit combined have incredible capacity.
“Nobody has ever measured, not even poets, how much the human heart can hold.” Zelda Fitzgerald
…But if I might be so bold
While I don’t know the exact amount
From what I have found
I believe
The human spirit
Can store
Even more
About ivonprefontaine
In keeping with bell hooks and Noam Chomsky, I consider myself a public and dissident intellectual. Part of my work is to move beyond (transcend) institutional dogmas that bind me to defend freedom, raising my voice to be heard on behalf of those who seek equity and justice in all their forms.
I completed my PhD in Philosophy of Leadership Studies at Gonzaga University, Spokane, WA. My dissertation and research was how teachers experience becoming teachers and their role as leaders.
I focus on leading, communicating, and innovating in organizations. This includes mindfuful servant-leadership, World Cafe events, Appreciative Inquiry, and expressing one's self through creativity. I offer retreats, workshops, and presentations that can be tailored to your organzations specific needs.
I published peer reviewed articles about schools as learning organizations, currere as an ethical pursuit, and hope as an essential element of adult eductaion. I published three poems and am currently preparing my poetry to publish as an anthology of poetry.
I present on mindful leadership, servant leadership, schools as learning organizations, how teachers experience becoming teachers, assessement, and critical thinking. I facilitate mindfulness, hospitality retreats. and World Cafe Events using Appreciative Inquiry.
I am writing and researching about various forms of leadership, how teachers inform and form their identity as a particular teacher, schools as learning organizations, hope, nonviolence and its anticipatory relationship with the future, as essential elements to teaching and learning.
Academic publications can be found at Ivon Gile Prefontaine on ResearchGate
ivonprefontaine
Teacher as Transformer 
Loved this Ivon. Glad you are meeting great people at the conference. Love, Sheri
Thank you and you are welcome Sheri. It has been uplifting.
Hi, Ivon. The poem, “Human Hearts and Spirits” that you mentioned so kindly in this post and attributed to Harry is actually an original poem of mine that I posted on on my blog, “A Grateful Man” on January 23, 2013. I believe that it is highly likely that a simple attribution error has been made–perhaps it is because I later also posted it on Harry’s site, at
http://poetscornerblog.wordpress.com/.
Russ Towne
From my post at “A Grateul Man”:
“Nobody has ever measured, not even poets, how much the human heart can hold.”
…But if I might be so bold
While I don’t know the exact amount
From what I have found
I believe
The human spirit
Can store
Even more
The first line is from Zelda Fitzgerald, novelist (1900-1948) (Source: wordsmith.org)
The rest is from me.
Love,
Russ
I am glad you corrected that point. I will edit the post and attribute it correctly. Thank you Russ.
Thank you, my friend!
Russ
You are welcome Russ.
Dearest Ivon, I truly believe those with open hearts “magically” encounter all sorts of helpful/giving souls along their journey. Here’s to overflowing hearts & spirits blessed with resources aplenty to pass on the gift… Much Love, Shauna
Thank you for the lovely comment Shauna.
Thanks for sharing the poem Ivon. It’s set me to mulling. 🙂
Great poem Russ.
Thank you for your kind comment about “Human Hearts and Spirits”, Elizabeth.
Russ
You are welcome
It is a beautiful poem and gives rise to serious reflection