I take my leave for the next day and will return Monday. I find in the quiet time those important things, their roots, and the dirt they grew in. Several Buddhist authors wrote about the need to recognize both the flowers and the weeds in our gardens. Charles Olson wrote this beautiful, simple, short poem I think echoes that message. I examine life fully and grow attentive, present, and creative in moments of solitude. The gap between stimulus and response grows. I explore radical opportunities to respond, not react. Enjoy.
whatever you have to say, leave
the roots on, let them
dangle
And the dirt
Just to make clear
where they come from
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 
That is my favorite Charles Olson poem. I missed being able to study with hum by a few years when he taught at SUNY at Buffalo. But did get to work with Creely–in fact we shared and office when I was a TA. Great Choice.>KB
Thank you. You are such a lucky person.
I LOVE this quote, or poem really. YES – YES, leave the roots on.
We need to remind ourselves of where we came from.
wonderful imagery
It is beautiful. Thank you for the comment Pam.
Very Taoist thought and imagery…. literally down to earth!
It reminded me of the writings of Senryu Suzuki as I was reading it the other day.
I like this idea to recognise everything in their own setting rather than just that which is desired.
I agree Alex. We lose sight of the beauty of the whole of nature.
Take time to smell the flowers also..Even the wild ones. 😉
Even the weeds.