The daily meanderings of a teacher

Bird Droppings April 7, 2023Wind in the trees Over the past weeks, several storms have come through the area. Just before I went to bed last night, according to the weather, we would get another in the morning; now, it is clear through Saturday. Several times during the night, I awakened, and a storm was…

Bird Droppings April 5, 2023Getting ready “In the government schools, which are referred to as public schools, Indian policy has been instituted there, and it’s a policy where they do not encourage, in fact, discourage, critical thinking and the creation of ideas and public education.” Russell Means I walked early this morning before sunrise taking…

Bird Droppings April 4, 2023A spiritual side to teaching. “Solitude does not necessarily mean living apart from others; rather, it’s never living apart from oneself. Not about the absence of other people – it is about being fully present to ourselves, whether or not we are with others.” Parker Palmer Dr. Parker Palmer is an…

Bird Droppings March 26, 2023A morning meandering while the moon is glowing Almost eight years ago, after tutoring in an after-school program with a student who needs constant repetition of material to remember, I read through several old emails from my doctorate and graduate cohort friends as some are defending their dissertations in the coming…

Bird Droppings March 22, 2023The inability to surmount learning difficulties It has been a few days since my last post. I have been extremely occupied with surgery Tuesday and recovering the past few days. Last week I had several doctor appointments, ultrasounds, blood work, and more doctors made it a crazy week. It seems my…

Bird Droppings March 17, 2023An eclectic morning “Learn as if you were going to live forever. Live as if you were going to die tomorrow.” Mahatma Gandhi It has been quite a few years since I watched an episode of Star Trek. It may have been one of the movies where Spock interfered with Star…

Bird Droppings March 12, 2023Can we teach a love of learning again? This has been a perplexing time of my life out of the classroom, giving advice here and there to fellow teachers, parents, and students. I recall a car wreck in which a young man died, and his passenger, my youngest son’s and my…

Bird Droppings March 11, 2023Are we going in the right direction? I reviewed my student’s online work status three years ago. A couple of surprises and some that were not. I thought that when the virus finally moved on and the smoke cleared, some grades would go up, and some would drop. We were told…

Bird Droppings February 9, 2023What is the freedom we desire? “Brute force, no matter how strongly applied, can never subdue the basic human desire for freedom and dignity. It is not enough, as communist systems have assumed, merely to provide people with food, shelter, and clothing. Human nature needs to breathe the precious air of…

Bird Droppings February 26, 2023All of life is connected and intertwined. I went out on my back porch for breakfast this morning, and I had gone out to get a few pictures of the sunrise but another morning of black and white sunrises in the cloud cover. I often turn my Merline Bird app on…