A Letter In October

Ted Kooser's poetry has a way of catching images then illuminating words into poetry that makes sense to all of us. Enjoy A Letter in October as we celebrate the beauty of autumn.

A Letter in October

Dawn comes later and later now,

and I, who only a month ago

could sit with coffee every morning

watching the light walk down the hill

to the edge of the pond and place

a doe there, shyly drinking,

then see the light step out upon

the water, sowing reflections

to either side -- a garden

of trees that grew as if by magic --

now see no more than my face,

mirrored by darkness, pale and odd,

startled by time.While I slept,

night in its thick winter jacket

bridled the doe with a twist

of wet leaves and led her away,

then brought its black horse with harness

that creaked like a cricket, and turned

the water garden under. I woke,

and at the waiting window found

the curtains open to my open face;

beyond me, darkness. And I,

who only wished to keep looking out,

must now keep looking in.

--Ted Kooser

Hard Hats, Ear Plugs and Douglas Fir: A Field Trip to Remember

Every time you drive through Colville, Washington one landmark you can't miss is the huge crane with an American flag flying on top that moves massive piles of logs for Vaagen Brothers Lumber, Inc. I never knew much else about the mill until today. We took our middle school students on a tour today as part of Forest Products Education Week. I grew up around the lumber industry in northern Idaho and these students are surrounded by the industry where we live, but I think everyone left today with new knowledge about what happens to a log from the time it reaches the mill until it is wrapped and loaded on a train car to be sent to all parts of the United States. We started our day behind the main headquarters where trees and a creek added to the natural beauty. Next we were fitted for hard hats and the tour began.The most amazing thing I learned today is how every part of each log is used for something at this mill. We have picked up bark at the mill numerous times to use for landscaping. A 4.6-megawatt Co-Generation plant on site produces power by utilizing some of the bark and woody materials that are accumulated. Sawdust is swept up to use for making particle board. After inserting ear plugs we moved through the loud buildings and learned how automated the mill is today. There was a pleasant smell of wood and all the areas were very clean. The logs were shaped into planks, bad ones were discarded, then the stacks were dried and moved outside ready to be wrapped.
Some facts we left with today:

There are presently more than 15 million acres of existing old growth forest. You will find 8.2 millions of these acres in Washington and Oregon.

The Douglas Fir is the most important tree in the West. It can be found in all forested sections of the state.

After a full day of listening, eating, walking, learning, and sharing a bus load of middle school students can be pretty quiet on the trip back to school.

Quick Vegetable Soup: A Keeper from the Recipe Box

When October begins, the rain starts to fall, and a fire is warming the room there is nothing better than homemade soup for dinner. This has been one of my keepers since I got Betty Crocker' s All-Time Favorites cookbook in the early '80's.

Quick Vegetable Soup
1 lb. ground beef
3 cups water
1 cup cut up carrots
1 cup diced celery
1 cup cubed, pared potatoes
2 medium onions, chopped ( about a cup)
1 28 oz. can of tomatoes
2 teaspoons salt
1 teaspoon bottled brown bouquet sauce
1/4 teaspoon pepper
1 bay leaf
1/4 teaspoon basil
( I added green beans to the batch above. Corn is also good to add. Be creative.)
Brown ground beef then drain off fat. Stir in the remaining ingredients and heat to boiling. Reduce heat. Cover and simmer just until vegetables are tender, about 20 minutes. 6 servings. Enjoy!

Sibling Assignment #39: Friday Afternoon Art

Silver Valley Girl gave this week's assignment. She asked us to write about something that happened before we went to college that contributed to being the teachers we are today. Raymond Pert's is here and Silver Valley Girl's is here. It am also using this for the Sunday Scribbling's word this week: Powerful.

When I was at Sunnyside School in Kellogg during my elementary years the teachers were known for certain art projects that were done each year in their classrooms. I loved that I could peer in rooms at recess and admire projects that I could look forward to doing if I got that teacher. It was powerful. Art was displayed at our school in amazing ways also. There was a glass case by the office that student work was highlighted each month. In the cafeteria the classrooms rotated their work so lunch time could be spent gazing at brilliant crayon designs, fall leaf paintings, and pencil sketches. Also, at PTA Chili Feed time we could feast our eyes on the student designed posters for a contest to advertise the yearly event. After forty- some years I can recall the artwork that influenced my early development of my creative side. Friday afternoon after recess seemed to be the time everyone did art! It sure gave me something to look forward to all week. Art was indeed powerful.

In Mrs. M.'s room in second grade I still remember the fall trees we painted. The class did an art walk in the neighborhood by the school picking up leaves along the way. Then we experimented with mixing paint colors to create autumn trees. I recall the smell of the fall day, the texture of the leaves, and the joy in creating those trees. The whole experience was more powerful when the works of art were hung on the glassed wall above the windows in the classroom.I also enjoyed doing a paper mache Christmas ornament and an Easter Bunny.

When I moved to Mrs. C.'s class in third grade we painted the American flag on butcher paper with tempera paint. I have fond memories in the intermediate grades of creating watercolor washes, designing chalk drawings, and rolling up tissue paper balls to make beautiful Christmas trees. All these projects were ones I had studied in the display case and the cafeteria. Art was important in our school and we were encouraged to be be creative. I hoped I would get Mrs. T. in 6th grade because she did my two favorite projects... the water color cartoon characters and the pencil sketches of shoes.

I did get Mrs. T. in sixth grade. I really felt like I was an artist when we did these two projects. She brought in comic pictures of characters like Popeye, Charlie Brown, Nancy, Henry, and Wimpy. They all seemed to be people. She showed us how to imitate the artist and sketch the cartoons. The part I loved about this project was using a tiny water color brush and painting our cartoons. I believe we actually outlined them also. When my picture of Emmy Lou was hanging in the cafeteria it made me feel proud.

I had an even prouder moment when we did our pencil sketch shoes. With this project we took our shoes off , put them on our desks, and pencil sketched and shaded our shoes. I had my worn brown saddle shoes on that day, but they were the perfect pair for the still life drawing. Mrs. T. entered mine in the AAUW art contest and I won a prize. Gazing at my picture in Hutton's window uptown and seeing a ribbon on my pencil sketch was a powerful moment for a sixth grade student that never considered herself an artist. KW was an artist. She could draw anything. I just was a wanna-be. That year I really felt like an artist.

I moved to junior high and never did any art again. I played in the band, but no time for art. In high school I couldn't take art because I was in band and choir. By then I didn't think I was good enough to do art.

Then I took Elementary Art Methods in college. That love for elementary school art came back. I knew then I would always try to provide creative opportunities for my students. When I taught elementary school I did just that. I don't know if we always had art Friday afternoon after recess, but we sure had art every week. I studied different art forms trying to expose my students to different experiences. I wanted them to feel how powerful art could be.

When I moved to middle school the students could take art class. I tried to allow them to be creative while teaching writing and drama, but art for Mrs. B. For my students that didn't take art, their lives probably became like mine did when I left elementary school. I was reminded last week when an artist came to work with drawing with my students that all of us need that quiet time to draw. My elementary teachers taught me to encourage students to take risks with creative projects. I took time to sketch the picture above this morning. It is a view of the lake from my window. I will share it tomorrow with my students and model how I need to build in more time for art.

Art is powerful in supporting that creative side of the brain. I am going to dust off my supplies, dig out those art methods books, and figure out ways to integrate art with my students again. I feel fortunate to have had such a rich art background in elementary school. I think that background has always helped me encourage students to explore their creative side. Now I want them to explore even more. Often teachers struggle with the balance between time spent on "core curriculum" so that "no child will be left behind". I'm going to see if our writer's workshop can include art! I would venture to say that students would score as well on a state write assessment if they could create a subject with sketches and color as they practice essay writing. That would be powerful!

You can find other Powerful Sunday Scribblings here.

Kit In the Tree: Photo Shoot #12

Yes, it is true. Every single thing our newest member of the cat family does is too cute. I let him go outside this afternoon and he decided it was time for a photo shoot of "Kit in the Tree". I am just glad I now have a digital camera.... I'd have to get a part-time job to afford the film with my 35 mm!
Again... who would drop off this gorgeous kitten? Their loss is our gain.

He ended his adventure outside by kissing McDuff hello. I think they will get along fine.

Autumn Images

Winter is an etching,

spring a watercolor,

summer an oil painting

and autumn a mosaic of them all.

~Stanley Horowitz