Tied to Black and White Photos

Last year as I was  studying the work of photographer Ansel Adams I began to see distinct beauty in black and white photos. I gave my brother a book for Christmas on black and white photography and now wish I had a copy of the book also.  Most of the time I change the photos to black and white after I take them. I don't really look at a subject in terms of black and white.

 I made photo calendars for family and friends for Christmas. It was interesting to look at photos changed to black and white and also to revisit those already in black and white. I made calendars for my brother and myself using only black and white photos. Here are a few favorites I found today while organizing photo files.

Sibling Assignment # 121: Tied to a Teacher: Mrs. Tregoning

This is the fourth sibling assignment we have used with Tied.  Silver Valley Girl gave us this assignment. "Write about seeing someone after a long time, and how the emotional ties you had with each other contributed to your experience of being with that person again."I will link to my siblings' posts soon.

I have shared many school memories on this blog. My friend Dawn and I help each other recollect the special events and activities from Mrs. Tregoning's sixth grade class at Sunnyside School in Kellogg, Idaho. You wanted to work hard in her class. You wanted to behave. She had a way of pulling the best she could out of every student she had. She encouraged me to write stories, she chose my pencil sketch of my shoes for the art contest ( and I won!), and she inspired  my love for reading and poetry. She was calm, kind, and very wise. I loved her class and had deep respect for her.

About eighteen years later I saw her again. Now I am sure our paths had crossed during junior high and high school. I only lived a block away from her house.Seeing her again was after I was married and a teacher also. I spent some time each summer at Rose Lake in northern Idaho. I was in a lawn chair on the dock reading a novel when I heard voices next door . I looked up and saw Mrs. Tregoning walking gracefully down the steps toward the beach. She was dressed in casual summer attire, carrying a drink, and laughing with our neighbors.  I remember thinking, " Is that really Mrs. T.?" I had never known of her to hang out with Floyd and Eva.

I felt like I was back in sixth grade. For some reason I thought I shouldn't be laying in a chair on a dock, but up doing some important reading or reciting some poetry. All these memories of stories to the Amazon, "Oh Captain, My Captain", water color painting, the end of the year picnic in Pinehurst,and Weekly Readers came rushing back.

I got up and went and talked to her. I was an adult, but felt awkward like I was the kid too young to be at the adult party. She put me at ease though. She inquired about my life and teaching. I was sixth grade polite. I explained about my job teaching in Kennewick. What I really wanted to explain was how she inspired me to become a teacher, how I tried to carry so much of what she modeled for me into my classroom, and how she was a hero to me. Still, I was sixth grade polite.

As the group walked to the dock and loaded on the floater I went back to my chair with my head still swirling with sixth grade memories. She smiled and waved again as I sat back down. She made me feel proud to have continued with my education and become a teacher. Once again she had that quiet way of making me feel important. Thanks to my classmate Rick Chapman for posting our class picture on Facebook.

Tied to Garden Walks

Every season of the year I love to walk around our property, but this year with signs of spring showing so early it is especially enjoyable. Take a walk with me and see

the red dogwood willow,

the pond without ice,

a lone watering can,

buds building on a rhododendron,

 sprouts pushing out of the soil,

and birdhouses waiting once again for the bird families to come and make nests.

Tied to Music Memories: We Are the World 25 for Haiti

Where did the years go? I couldn't believe it when I read last week-end that the release of the original "We Are the World" video was twenty-five years ago. I remember back in the day gathering a group of talented fifth grade students and putting our own version of this song together for a music program. I have always loved the original  video and the song also. When the new version premiered at the Opening Ceremonies of the Olympics I was eager to see how many of the original performers would be brought  back and what new faces would be added. I am here to declare... I have reached middle age. I didn't recognize many of the performers the first time I watched the video. However I was thrilled that I recognized  Jeff Bridges, Barbra Streisand, Tony Bennett, and Natalie Cole.

Even without Paul Simon, Kenny Rogers, Tina and Cindi singing solos I really liked listening to Josh Groban, Celine Dion, and Carlos Santana on the guitar. It was bittersweet to see  Micheal Jackson from the first video singing a duet with  his sister in this video. I avoided pictures of Haiti after the earthquake, but the pictures that were woven into this video gave me hope. It was moving to see children dancing, mothers smiling, and people working together.  Perhaps there were not as many rock singers in this version, but I have to say I liked the group of rappers and they added a new dimension to this video.

Now if you have no idea what I am talking about I posted the video. If you want to feel nostalgic, I also posted the original video. I've got this song playing over and over in my head again.

Tied to Photos

Here are some recent photos I really liked.

Isabelle caught by the evening light.

JEJ's shot of the sunrise yesterday.

A reminder of Valentine's Day

A frozen slough by Cataldo, Idaho

That amaryllis again!

Tied to Blogging: One thousand Two Hundred Twenty-Two Posts Later

Three years ago today I began this blog. These one thousand two hundred twenty-two posts have introduced you to my beautiful corner of the world, my siblings and our weekly writing assignments, the dogs and cats, our gardens, my mom, lots and lots of poetry, even more photographs, our favorite camping spots, many of my favorite books, recipes, and blog friends. I have made slide shows, posted favorite videos, loaded treasured old photos, and played familiar songs. I have linked many of my posts now to Facebook.

Building in the routine of writing almost every day has been important to me. I look forward to pairing this blog with the new one I am sharing with my students that I wrote about yesterday. Again, if you want a view into the window of my classroom you can visit it here.

I hope you keep stopping by. It has been a pleasure meeting you.