“And you ask 'what if I fall?' Oh but my darling, what if you fly?”
—Erin Hanson, Poet

what i'm listening to right now

another favorite from a walk in the woods - "the lake," by tim grimm:

 

“Neither a lofty degree of intelligence, nor imagination, nor both together, go to the making of genius. Love, Love, Love. That is the soul of genius.”
—Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart

A screenshot a day

Happy first day of fall from Houston!

Overheard walking to the cafeteria

One 7th grade girl to another: "I got this cut on my hand climbing. I'm a good climber. I want to be an American ninja warrior when I grow up."

Oh, sweet one. No high school girl wants to be an American ninja warrior. How do dreams like this die in just a few years? Why can't we all have the bright and shining dreams of a middle schooler? 

what i'm listening to right now

i really enjoyed the movie adaptation of bill bryson's a walk in the woods.  no, it is not super faithful to all the details of the book, but i laughed SO much, i loved the soundtrack, and i felt great nostalgia for the mountains of north carolina, which holds my heart.

this song - "brother," by lord huron - is in the movie and i found it lovely:

what i'm listening to right now

i'm listening to this haunting and beautiful song by an artist i don't know well (some ingrid michaelson music led me to him). the rhythm is stuck in my head right now.  i heard a live (not studio-polished) version first, so that's what i wanted to share with you.

"boys in the street," by greg holden:

when i first got my own class of students, in the fall of 2005, i started what would become a little tradition.  on september 11th of every year, i invited my students - 11th and 12th graders - to share their memories of 9/11 because i think there is power - and catharsis - in telling those stories.  i have very vivid memories of the moment i found out about the attack and the moments after that, and i don't think i'm alone in that.

and every year, my students were younger and younger when 9/11 happened.  stories changed from "i was in middle school" to "i was in elementary school and our teachers didn't want to tell us and then my mom picked me up early" - memories they were only on the periphery of.  today i teach kids born in 1997 and 1998.  they were too young to remember, really, and today i didn't ask them to reflect on it as a class.  14 years.  since my students no longer have personal memories of that day, is it time to call it history?

i'm doing - as you can tell - some reflection today.

a beautiful chart, and a great list of 21st century books to read.  i've read (and loved!) a lot of books on this list!

In the middle of a parent meeting last week, with a dad asking a million questions, all written down in advance in front of him, his wife got up and walked out of the room. She returned and handed him a cup of water and a mini Three Musketeers bar. He looked at her, took a deep breath, said thank you, and unwrapped the candy. "I didn't have lunch," he said. "Work is crazy and the boss is in Spain so we're dealing with the time difference and I knew I had to leave early to get to this meeting and I've been wanting to ask you these questions for a while..." His wife patted his arm and said, "I could tell you hadn't eaten lunch."  He resumed asking his questions, a little calmer and a little slower. His wife smiled at me.

This. This is love. 

a ruby a day

how to catch a cat, by miss claire:

step 1: lie down on a sunny spot on the floor.
step 2: wait.

“Character may be manifested in the great moments, but it is made in the small ones.”
—Phillip Brooks

what i'm listening to right now

"on top of the world," by imagine dragons:


this was the final song played at christie's wedding a few weeks ago, and i loved dancing to it with her and all my friends!

"You should have a sign on your door," a mother said to me this afternoon, in the middle of a meeting with her daughter and husband and me about where her daughter is applying to college. "Therapist, it should say. And below it: I also do college counseling."

I laughed and was a little touched. It's a great - and not untrue - compliment to receive. 

last night at a parent program at school, i was walking into the room at the same time as some parents i have known for two years.  the mom gave me a hug and then ran her hands over my hair.  "look at your doll hair!," was her first comment.  "oh yes," i said as i laughed awkwardly, "it's gotten really long - i need a haircut!"  

doll hair?!  i don't even know what to make of this.  my hair hasn't gotten REALLY long…it's just a smidge longer than normal…but i didn't know what else to say.  i think this is a compliment and i will totally take it, but i'm laughing to myself a bit.