Bird Droppings July 6, 2026

Should we look within to who we really are?

Amazing what a day or two out of routine will do. I did not get on my computer and do anything of a writing sort the past two days, knowing that with the rest of the coming week, my next few days off, I would be writing in significant quantity. As I look back on my life, good and bad, I would not change anything, of course. I was recently reunited with some friends from a long time ago on Facebook. I worked at a summer camp in 1970 and had many great experiences. It’s been a few years since I had lunch with the former Dean of Education at Piedmont College, reflecting on ideas and thoughts over Thai food; I need to give him a call and sit down again.

In that process of looking back and catching up, I was reintroduced to James Kavanaugh in a roundabout way. I recall reading some of his poetry in the 1970’s, as he was popular for several reasons in the hippie culture of that period. He was a renegade Catholic priest, as he wrote against the church and was rather quickly no longer a priest in the Catholic Church legal sense of the word. His conferences, seminars, and books were cult favorites of the time. He has since passed away, leaving his beautiful words.   

I began my master’s degree Program at Piedmont College in the spring of 2002, sidestepping some of the basic entry requirements with a very high Miller’s analogy score. As I progressed, it seemed I needed to be interviewed for admission to the Education Department, which was odd since I was nearing the end of my master’s coursework. I set an appointment and went to my interview. The line was about 20 people, all there for an initial interview. Here I was, already completed and doing an initial interview, sort of the cart before the horse, perhaps. I went in and was asked several questions about the mission statement of the Piedmont College Department of Education.

“The School of Education’s mission is focused on mastering the Art of Teaching: Preparing Proactive Educators to Improve the Lives of All Children. In support of this mission, we strive to prepare reflective, scholarly, and proactive educators. These practitioners effectively educate their students to become knowledgeable, inquisitive, and collaborative learners in diverse, democratic learning communities.” Piedmont College Education Department

As I thought about my questions, answered them, and headed home, I felt good and was ready to finish my master’s program. A few days later, I received a letter stating I had failed my interview. Immediately, I called my advisor, who called the Dean, and set up another interview with the Dean of the Education Department. So here I am, failing my initial interview, and I can rub some people the wrong way relatively quickly, but I had felt good about my interview a few weeks ago and was confused. As I went into the Dean’s office, the Assistant Dean was also present. My first question was from the Dean: how do I get on the Bird Droppings email list? I really liked this conversation and passed my interview.

I continued from my master’s at Piedmont directly into their Specialist Program and met with the Director of the program to plan my course of study. It was interesting that the professor who failed me in my interview was, by chance, one of the professors in the cohort recommended to me by the Director of the program, and I was sweating bullets. It was not until a few months later that we met, and we have long since been good friends. It seems that one interview day was a bad one for him: a wrecked car, his Porsche on the way, among other things. As my specialist classes unfolded, this professor would start and/or finish each session with James Kavanaugh as the point of inspiration. Within a few weeks, I was acquiring copies of Kavanaugh’s work. After nearly forty years, I am a fan again. I wanted to share this piece today from his book, Quiet Water, published in 1991.

In the Center of Your Soul
By James Kavanaugh

There is quiet water.
In the center of your soul,
Where a son or daughter
Can be taught what no man knows.

There’s a fragrant garden
In the center of your soul,
Where the weak can harden
And a narrow mind can grow.

There is a rolling river
In the center of your soul,
An eternal giver
With a rich and endless flow….

There is a land of muses
In the center of your soul,
Where the rich are losers
And the poor are free to go.

So remain with me then,
To pursue another goal
And to find your freedom
In the center of your soul.

I read through this poem now twenty times this morning, each time getting a bit more and, each time, literally another tear. I look into my tiny granddaughters’ eyes, and I see this poem. I have always felt that the eyes hold a person’s soul. These are very powerful words for today. I do believe that, in this day and age, we all need some inspiration and additional meaning in our lives. You could ask what the soul is, and go off on numerous tangents and wanderings, but for today, have the soul be that of who you are. The soul is your essence, borrowing from James Hillman and Karl Jung. So many days ago, I started asking, as I wrote, to please keep all in harm’s way on your minds and in your hearts, and today is no different, with headlines blaring about so many in pain and suffering around the world. Again, a very quick reminder: search your soul, and please keep all in harm’s way on your mind and in your heart, and always give thanks. Namaste.

My family and friends, I do not say this lightly,

Mitakuye Oyasin

(We are all related)

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