Our lovely school was beginning to look pretty well neglected on the outside.  Weeds were encroaching on the entrance and bushes were taking over. Thanks to Kindergarten mom and master gardener, Cat Chupein (August’s mom), our school now looks tended to and cared for.   Spending time talking about native plants and long-term plans for the grounds around the building, I was reminded that the state of affairs at school (and in our lives) is all but a moment in time.    We have planned to remove all non-native plants and create gardens that will educate our students about having a sustainable relationship [...]

This weekend I burned this piece of a log, with slices through the center and a wick down the middle.  As the wick burned and caught the wood on fire, a star opened up from the center of the log and extended out through the bark.  As I sat watching the log burn from the inside out, rather than the outside in, I was reminded to reconsider how I approach my daily ongoings. What do I do simply because it’s how it’s typically done?  And, how might I reconsider my  approach and create a new experience with greater fulfillment? My reflections [...]

I took this picture out my living room window at 5:14 pm on Tuesday night.  My stomach was in knots, and I was a bundle of nerves leading up to this polarized and contentious election. I didn’t know what was to come, or how long it would take to find out what was to come. Filled with emotion and anticipation, I looked up and noticed a glorious rainbow of light caused by the setting sun.   In my mindfulness practice, I remind myself when in a storm, seek the rainbow.  I have been seeking many rainbows in 2020! This moment in the [...]

REMINDER: NO SCHOOL ON TUESDAY (ELECTION DAY) This year, my daughter dressed up as a Drop Box, and we went to drop our ballots as a family. Since school is closed on Tuesday for Election Day, it’s a perfect opportunity to go to your neighborhood polling place and cast your vote!  I will never tell you how to vote or who to vote for… but, I will strongly encourage you to participate in Democracy by voting. Every presidential election year, a little over half of eligible Americans vote.  Some people feel like their vote doesn’t matter because they live in such [...]

Aaahhh, the magical time when summer fades into winter -- when leaves change colors and meander through the air on their way to the ground, when the air is just warm enough to sit outside in the evening but just cool enough to need a hoodie and some extra snuggles. I try to hit the pause button in this fleeting moment, the glorious transition from summer to winter, when nothing seems permanent and everything holds a little bit of magic. Yellow has been my favorite color for years and years.  At one point, I realized that yellow is a color that [...]

This weekend, my family celebrated Thanksgiving.  We aren’t going to be able to celebrate on Thanksgiving Day due to changes in some family members’ work situations.  After the appropriate quarantining and COVD testing, our family was able to fully be around one another this weekend.  This picture is of my sister and dad together, without masks, for the first time in eight months.  It was beautiful.  As hard as it is to maintain our distance from those we love the most, it is important that we are diligent and consistent in order to keep the virus at bay. Please be sure to [...]

“Antiracist Baby is bred, not born. Antiracist Baby is raised to make society transform,” Is the text on the first page of this book that my daughter, Aruna, is reading. I intentionally stock Aruna’s library with books that tell true stories of women who have impacted the world in positive ways, picture books that illustrate people of differing races, cultures, and family structures, and stories about kindness, bravery, love, and acceptance. My parenting choices remind me of City Neighbors’ foundational belief that every student is Known, Loved, and Inspired. I’ve always thought that to be known is for others to really [...]

When the world is flipped on its head, at least it gives you a new perspective.   Whenever I feel overwhelmed by the everything-ness of it all right now, worried about the state of affairs in our country, concerned by continued racial inequities in our culture, or focused on making sure online learning is relevant and effective, I remind myself that all of this is giving me a new perspective. I actually see things differently.  Over these past seven months, I have learned so much about myself. I have realized how much of my daily  life used to be filled with [...]

Last night I woke up in the middle of the night with my mind racing through my To-Do lists.  After an unsuccessful hour of trying to clear my head, I got up and worked for a couple of hours to feel a sense of accomplishment and be able to go back to sleep. Today, as I felt sleep creep behind my eyelids, I simply kept going.  Push through, I told myself.   And then THIS happened…. This afternoon, I looked up and was struck by the beauty of the warm sun against the cool sky.  At that moment, it didn’t matter what [...]

This gorgeous slice of a Cyprus tree reveals its many layers of history and knowledge in the rings, knots, and holes. I wonder which markings reveal a difficult year or a dry summer… what caused this hole or that knot. I wonder how this year, with all of its peculiarities, impacted the rings of our center? What story will this tell in our futures?      After countless months of sanding, prepping, and collecting all of the right pieces, this slab of wood is ready to become an outdoor table in my backyard. As a sculptor, I find a great escape when [...]