до свидания

 Last day of class with the visiting students.

Fortunately, the Easter Bunny also left a lovely puzzle of the Seattle skyline when he hopped by this week--perfect activity for students to do while practicing conversational English.

Cool cat with shades (it is so fun to teach jargon and slang), provided live music while the rest of the group puzzled away.

It's been a delight to watch this frosh blossom from shy and uncertain into hamming it up for photos.

 And as any PNWesterner knows, one GOES OUTSIDE when the sun shines.  It was surprising to all of us, how cold our Siberian scholars were here.  They were happy to head out into the sunshine as well for our final choir rehearsal.

Viktoria teaching us a traditional Russian song--something to do with shoes.

Natasha, their head English teacher, left us with this clock made out of birch (the same material used for the banya [sauna]) to count down the hours until our school visits them at Gymnasium #10 in Novosibirsk, Siberia.

stay. please.

If you're not approaching, I hope at least
You're off to comfort someone who needs you more,
Not lost wandering aimlessly
Or drawn to the shelter of well-lit rooms
Where people assume you've arrived already.

If you're coming this way, send me the details—
The name of the ship, the port it leaves from—
So I can be down on the dock to help you
Unload your valises, your trunks and boxes
And stow them in the big van I'll have rented.

I'd like this to be no weekend stay
Where a single change of clothes is sufficient.
Bring clothes for all seasons, enough to fill a closet;
And instead of a single book for the bedside table
Bring boxes of all your favorites.

I'll be eager to clear half my shelves to make room,
Eager to read any titles you recommend.
If we've many in common, feel free to suggest
They prove my disposition isn't to blame
For your long absence, just some problems of attitude,

A few bad habits you'll help me set to one side.
We can start at dinner, which you're welcome
To cook for us while I sweep and straighten
And set the table. Then light the candles
You've brought from afar for the occasion.




Light them and fill the room I supposed I knew
With a glow that shows me I was mistaken.
Then help me decide if I'm still the person I was
Or someone else, someone who always believed in you
And imagined no good reasons for your delay.

"To Happiness" by Carl Dennis, from Unknown Friends

hippety-hop

The Cadbury bunny hopped past my doorstep today!

appropriate

that this was the daily cartoon delivered to me as we are no longer allowed to have coffee from the staff room.

spring, sprang, sprung

"We hold on to so much stuff that weighs us down and makes us feel bad…grudges, regrets, outdated dreams, crummy beliefs about ourselves…even ratty clothes that make us feel bad but we just don’t get rid of them for some reason…..it’s heavy and yucky and all it takes is a decision to not carry it around anymore….wouldn’t today be a great day to let some of it go….to get rid of it??? Just try….just a little bit, then a little more tomorrow…..it’s Spring cleaning time…time to let go of anything that is weighing you down, beautiful soul!!!!! You’ll fly better without all of that stuff!!!"  

from Melody Ross's blog site.  Good words for this day of spring equinox.

city sightings

 Out of the classroom and into the city with our Russians visitors took us first to the Space Needle.

In front of the construction for local glass artist Chihuly.  Cannot wait to see this new place, especially at night.

Views were fairly decent, but no Rainier.

Lake Union and a few of the Cascades.

Happy daffs with a bit of blue and sunshine.

Curds & whey for lunch in the form of delicious and spicy Beecher's mac/cheese; although it can be a bit off-putting to watch them shovel curds around while eating.

A ginormous chair in a chocolate shop that was quite generous with it's fudge samples.

A colleague's husband has just opened a  robotics lab with a Russian scientist, so it was a perfect place for us to visit.  This is Robbie the Robot. 

A fuzzy prototype.

And I did find a penny right away as I entered the city streets and I decided to put it through one of those souvenir vending smushing machines.

it's a bird, it's a plane....

 

  it's a ringed-neck pheasant!  During 1st period yesterday, there was a pause in the rain drops and suddenly, I saw this large bird zipping about the parking lot.  So we sneaked slowly outside to see if we could get photos of it.  Found out later from our admin that this is Ringo, our resident pheasant.    

Another charming corner of this small city; although one could argue that a spitting ram is not so charming.  However, he does add interest to the doorway of the wool/knitting shop.

Used a different entrance for my weekly pop-in to the library and found this haiku among the pines and mossed sidewalks.

And finally!  A penny found.  I leave you with this good quote:

We read to reenchant the world.

Lila Azan Zangareh

grovel to none

 As I firmly believe that bribery is a much more effective motivator than threats (both for myself and for students), I promised one class of students that if they met certain criteria for two weeks, that I would take them to a movie this week.  The following reading by Chief Tecumseh was used as a most effective voice-over throughout the movie.  And hearing this during this week was serendipitous as it covers much of what I've been discussing and pondering with friends.

So live your life so the fear of death can never enter your heart. 

Trouble no one about their religion; respect others in their views, 

and demand that they respect yours. 

Love your life, 

perfect your life,

 beautify all things in your life. 

 

Seek to make your life long and of service to your people. 

Prepare a noble death song for the day when you go over the great divide. 

Always give a word or sign of salute when meeting or passing a stranger if in a lonely place. 

Show respect to all people, but grovel to none. 

When you arise in the morning, give thanks for the light, 

for your life and strength. 

Give thanks for your food and for the joy of living. 

If you see no reason for giving thanks,

 the fault lies in yourself. 

Touch not the poisonous firewater 

that makes wise ones turn to fools and robs them of their visions. 

When your time comes to die,

 be not like those whose hearts are filled with fear of death, 

so that when their time comes 

they weep and pray for a little more time 

to live their lives over again in a different way. 

Sing your death song, 

and die like a hero going home.

Tecumseh

Novosibirsk, Siberia

 Meet:  Natasha, Mikhail, Boyko, Ekatrina, Vika, Masha, Olga, Andry, Daniil, Diana, Anya, Katya, Daiyru, and Anastasia.

Here, they are enjoying the 10 minutes of sunshine that has occurred so far in their visit.  We are laughing at them a bit because they think it's so cold here.  Our winter has been consistently 20-40 degrees warmer than theirs, but something about the damp air here makes them stay bundled up--even inside.

They bring much energy into the classroom and our choir is growing bigger on a daily basis--we're already planning a small performance for their farewell party next week.  Stay tuned...

the kindness of (semi) strangers

What a wild week--ice, snow, thunder, deluges of rain, sun and wild winds.  And that was just the school events :)  The weather is mirroring our attitudes or is shaping them.  The Russians have arrived (we've a contingent of students/teachers visiting us for two weeks from Novosibirsk, Siberia--more about this later) and we're winding up third quarter--always the toughest few weeks of school.

So it was a treat to walk into my favorite coffee/tea shop.  When I ordered a lemongrass tisane, the proprietor was so distressed that they were out, he insisted that I take these two other kinds (for free) to sample.  I'm to report back to him this weekend what I thought of these new flavors.  V. kind and totally unnecessary as I was quite happy with my cinnamon/cardamom choice.

And in rather hysterical news, I've been invited to be part of the Admissions Committee.   Should be a lively and interesting experience.  Stay tuned...

to sleep, perchance to dream

daylight %$*%$)*( time

 thought this quote from a fb feed summed up this shift in time:

 blame spring ahead for being cranky and confused.

Like hormones - only crunchier!

un-mossed

Due to a confluence of happenings, my address will once again be changing soon.  This is a positive move on many levels and will give me the chance to again sort and organize my earthly goods. 

And!  This morning, I finally met my little garbage strewer and roof-top party giver.  Such a cute face for such a miniature irritant.

don't let yourself in....

 
If you can't bring yourself to build
a snowman or even to clench
a snowball or two to fling
at the pine tree trunk, at least
find some reason to take you out

of yourself: scrape a patch of grass clear
for the birds maybe; prod at your shrubs
so they shake off the weight, straighten up;
or just stump about leaving prints
of your boots, your breath steaming out.

Promise. Don't let yourself in
for this moment again: the end
of the afternoon, drawing the curtains
on the glare of the garden, a whole
day of snow nobody's trodden.

"Nobody" by Michael Laskey, from Permission to Breathe. © Smith/Doorstop Books, 2004.

jewels

Yes, I know one isn't to eat sugar when one is sickish, but sometimes the soul just needs chocolate.   While I am usually not a fan of the weird things the M&M company does to flavor their candies, have to say that I'm enjoying these new dark choc/raspberry treats.

every step

Beautiful card; such difficult words by which to live.

snows of spring

This morning's light seemed brighter and when I peeked out the window, saw some lovely snow!  Unfortunately, not enough to cancel school, but enough to create a lacy fairy-effect on all the branches & brambles.

Stunned by their new blanket; they were so perky yesterday afternoon.

whimsical

always on the look-out for things to add whimsy to my days and tile created by a local artisan fit that description!