The daily meanderings of a teacher

Tag: Writing

  • At what age should we be seeking a destination

    Bird Droppings June 19, 2025At what age should we be seeking a destination “Life is about the journey, not the destination; we don’t know what tomorrow brings,” Steven Tyler, AEROSMITH. Occasionally, I get amazed, and not too many days ago, while driving from point A to point B, a song was playing in my son’s…

  • Don’t crossword puzzles take some time?

    Bird Droppings June 18, 2025Don’t crossword puzzles take some time? Towards the end of my last college history class, one of my students was working on a particular assignment and had to define bias. She was unsure which definition was correct and asked for my opinion. I explained that historical bias is that of the…

  • Today should always be the first day.

    Bird Droppings June 14, 2025Today should always be the first day. Over the past several weeks, we have been cleaning out our storage buildings. It is a slow, tedious process of finding things we have not seen in twenty or more years. I found a briefcase with my bank statements from 1973-76 or so in…

  • Why is seeking peace so difficult?

    Bird Droppings June 10, 2025Why is seeking peace so difficult? Around the world, armies are moving as I write. There are missiles being aimed and tanks rolling. War is a profit-driven machine for industry, and sadly, it is more about money than ideology. I have always been against war and have always felt that there…

  • Are we missing Creativity?

    Bird Droppings June 6, 2025Are we missing Creativity? Today was another quiet morning; as I wandered out and about, birds hiding from view were already calling—the crickets and frogs, as always, a beautiful chorus for the morning awakening. Yesterday, several tree frogs visited our back porch, hiding under pots and a baseball cap. The air…

  • It takes more than one strand to make a rope.

    Bird Droppings June 4, 2025It takes more than one strand to make a rope. I opened a Matthew Fox daily meditation, which was based on Thomas Merton, a Trappist monk. Merton’s words were of his Celtic heritage and his grandmother’s family name, Bird. I found it interesting as I know my grandmother’s family came from…

  • Bird Droppings May 17, 2025 Is there a pot of gold at the end of the rainbow? “Most folks are about as happy as they make up their minds to be.” Abraham Lincoln Perhaps some people are inherently grouchy in the scheme of things; in Lincoln’s view, they want to be grouchy. Sitting here pondering…

  • Being reborn is simply listening with the heart

    Bird Droppings May 14, 2025 Being reborn is simply listening with the heart So often in life, we hear words and rationalize those utterances, develop an opinion, and then logically state a response. I was sitting in a meeting after talking with my principal about next year, and being a retired part-timer, I am sort…

  • Searching for a flower, the butterfly pea (Clitoria marina), or is it gone now

    Bird Droppings May 7, 2025Searching for a flower, the butterfly pea (Clitoria marina), or is it gone now Interestingly, I had two thoughts earlier in the week as I started the day that made me think of them. One I heard on the radio was that I was going to get some gas in my…

  • Wondering is a powerful tool.

    Bird Droppings May 6, 2025Wondering is a powerful tool. Several years back, we started a school-wide vocabulary of the week during the school year. I was reminded of this as I looked through my various files for quotes. About eight years ago, as the day wound down, an email from the head of the English…