The picture below was not taken today. Winter arrived. In some parts of our fair province 10-15 cm (3-5 inches) of snow fell. The insight is that it will be back up about 15 C on the weekend. Behind each cloud lays blue sky. I only have to wait.
Behind sullen clouds;
Insight awaits
In spaciousness.
Effortlessly
Be present
Hear silence.
In refuge
Rest heart and mind
Drift with the current.
Behind clouds;
Blue sky
Be patient.
This is tomorrow. In many parts of the world, it is a lack of education that holds back girls. What can we do to help?
Tiny, from Tiny Lessons Blog nominated my blog for an award called the Reality Blog Award. I am grateful to Tiny. You can decide what you would like to do based on time and other considerations. There are no rules per se. I followed the template that Tiny provided, but each of us can follow our path on this award.
Here is the image for this award:
These are five questions that Tiny passed on and I will answer:
1) If you could change something what would you change?
I would have become a teacher sooner in life.
2) If you could repeat an age, what age would it be?
This is two answers: 20 and 22. The first year was the year Kathy and I met and the second was the year we married.
3) What one thing really scares you?
I handle the loss of those close to me well, but still it is the thing I think that scares me the most.
4) What one dream have you not completed yet and do you think you will be able to complete it.
I would finish my PhD, start a school, and write.
5) If you could be someone else for the day, who would you be?
I would be interested in being Jesus, Buddha, or Mohammed for a day.
I nominated 20 different blogs I visit regularly. They include photography, poetry, prose, opinions, spirituality, etc. They are not the only blogs I visit, but I wanted to acknowledge a new group. I visit them and gain insight from their reality.
This award does not go with any specific “rules”. Instead each nominee can do whatever feels good to them, but I hope they will take the nomination as a sign of appreciation and encouragement.
A nice beginning to a Tuesday morning after Thanksgiving.
Kathy and I went to the farm yesterday and shared Thanksgiving with Kathy’s niece. We took advantage of a nice day for a walk to the old house and down to a slough on the property. Along the way, we came across a doe. She was skittish and it took time and effort to get a picture. It is hunting season in Alberta so that might be part of the skittishness, but, also this doe has a young one. We did not see the spring fawn, but the mother would stand, watch us, and, then take off, probably reassuring herself the fawn was safe and she served as a distraction.
It reminded me of Parker Palmer‘s book,The Hidden Wholeness. He compared the soul to a shy animal. Last Friday, during professional development, after a reference to the spiritual nature of life, I pointed out to a person spirituality is personal and private tentatively shared with our self first and, afterwards, with those we are closest to. I persisted and hope I left food for thought.
As Kathy and I walked, the deer reappeared several times and, despite attempts at being quiet and still, the deer remained shy and reluctant.
I sit quietly, with occasional great stillness, and my spirit, like the deer, runs for cover. In the midst of strangers and intruders, what else could be expected at moments of vulnerability like the hunting season or when we look to protect that which is closest to us.
Quiet and still
Camouflaged and vigilant
Remains in safe haven
Hidden from view
Protects the important
Distracts the intruders
Returns to its child.
I sit
Wait patiently
Soul peeks shyly
Moves tentatively
Waits for safety
Reveals itself in that moment
A dance repeated.
Look closely. The poplar and the spruce in the foreground frame her in the background.
On Canadian Thanksgiving, we give thanks and await, with hope, for the next moment of thankfulness.
Hope has a way of lying in wait,
a covert operation,
disguised under fallen circumstances,
accumulation of littered dreams.
Just when the next step seems impossible,
the breath of heaven stirs,
tantalizing waft,
and there it is –
a glimmer,
a hint,
a whispered nuance;
Hope
underfoot.
We are in the midst of Canadian Thanksgiving weekend and honouring Sabbath holds more meaning although maybe it should not. What if I were grateful and thankful each day-each moment?
Gratitude and thankfulness
Celebrate each moment
Turn to beloved others
Hold tight
Recognize worth
Share sacred
Moment by moment
Recognize extraordinary
Revealed in ordinary
What I take for granted
It is there
In each moment.
The rich bounty
Feel blessed.
That is Kathy standing on a rock right above Rearguard Falls on the Fraser River in Mount Robson Provincial Park. Two things I am grateful for.
During the autumn season we are experiencing, this beautiful picture and the accompanying words carry much weight in their message.
Companion
tears splash through silence
dear waxing Moon drizzled peace
fusing solitude
Today was professional development day. The inconsistencies revealed in these exercises fascinate me. They are uninspiring, exhausting, and annoying. Frequently, I find these events are counterproductive. What they lack is personal choice. Yet, on my way home, I thought, “Am I seeing this the right way? What can I do to further the process of learning as a role model for students and other adults?” Learning is relational process between people and subject. We live in the world we learn. The world we create is lived out in and through these relationships.
My mission in life seems to have been one of a life-long learner. We sacrificed, as a family, and I obtained a B. Ed. When I felt that was insufficient, we doubled-down and I completed a Master of Education. Today, we have tripled-down and I am completing a PhD. I love learning and, when I am given choice, I believe, like many others in the profession, I make good choices. My learning is not mine. It belongs, in some ways, to those who contributed in many ways to keep the dream alive.
Live fully
Share fully
Learn one’s voice
Sing life’s song.
Whet my curiosity
Recognize gaps in wisdom
Attempt to fill
Best I can.
In each sense
Plant seeds of wonder
Water and feed
Grow rich with the wisdom.
Learn truths
Each moment contains
Be in relationship with the world
With others.
Here is a short, beautiful poem accompanied by an equally touching picture of hope.
ivonprefontaine
Teacher as Transformer 