Silence in worship

Silence is a difficult discipline--the most difficult for me, anyway. There are various ways to approach "centering down" as Quakers say. I borrow from other traditions as needed.

One is to think of a saying, in "lectio divina" style: an example is the verse, "Be still and know that I am God." ... wait with it for a few moments. "Be still and know that I am." Wait.... "Be still and know." Wait.... "Be still." Wait.... "Be." Wait.... "Be still and know that I am God."

Or use a single word, whatever you feel you need most at the time.

Another is to observe your breathing--just pay attention to it.

Or hold people in the Light (a.k.a. praying for them, in whatever fashion works for you). Sometimes I start with the people in the circle, then expand it. When I get to the whole world, that's as centered as I get! If I get that far, and "come back to myself" that often seems to correspond to others' sense of a "gathered" or "covered" meeting -- when we are communally filled with the Spirit.

There are many books, pamphlets, & blog posts for those who want to read more.

Love as a discipline

These passages seem particularly relevant to me lately, speaking to my heart, especially in view of recent events. "Love must be a kind of discipline. If we love only with our feelings, we're sunk--we may feel love one day and something quite other the next. ... I realized I must learn to love with my will, not my feelings. ... And so I enjoyed the warm feelings, the stuff of the heart, when it was present between us, as it sometimes was, ... And when it wasn't, there was the will to love, something like...a generator kicking in, a backup. ... Wounded people use a lot of smoke and mirrors, they thrust the bitterness and rage out there like a shield. Then it becomes their banner, and finally, their weapon. But I stopped falling for the bitterness and rage. I didn't stop knowing it was there--and there for a very good reason--but I stopped taking the bullet for it. With God's help, I was able to start seeing through the smoke. ... It's all in increments.... Healing came as little drops of water, and never the mighty ocean when you need it.... There's no way to deal with their suffering, except through love. ... Trust that, believe that, as hard as it is to believe right now. Act as if it were true, it can change things. ... Go in where there's common ground. Do whatever you can to find common ground, and if you do nothing more, forgive...and pray.... Whenever she [substitute the other pronoun if needed] lashes out, whenever she draws away, pray and forgive, forgive and pray." Karon, Jan. In the Company of Others. NY: Viking, 2010. 239-241.

Bring your whole self to Meeting:

If you are struggling with anger, bring that to Friends meeting for worship, and engage with your issues and God while surrounded by Friends. What safer place to do so? Since one of the qualities we value is integrity, we feel that one can be angry and still be Quaker. I'm certainly angry fairly often...and who fails to be in an unjust world, surrounded by narcissism and greed? If you feel unworthy, bring that too. We also value equality--God values all of us, and so do we also try to love our neighbors as ourselves. Who feels worthy, or deserving? (oh, those previously-mentioned narcissists!) Yet we are all equally worthy of God's love and the love of our neighbors. Bring your whole self to Friends meeting for worship.

Birds, music, and misc 2010

Nov. 29th, 2010

Galveston Island, TX birding

Today we saw dunlins, killdeers, spotted sandpipers, great-tailed grackles, oyster catchers, storks (flocks), snowy egrets, great white egrets, reddish egrets, great blue herons, white pelicans, an osprey, and one roseate spoonbill. Also a yellowish crab about 4" big. The sea, the sea was very foamy, big surf. The marshes were flat & filled with birds. Everywhere were the egrets stalking.

Nov. 27th, 2010

Houston birding

Today we went to High Island, Texas, and saw the following:
neotropic cormorants (in their rookery!)
white ibis
black vultures & turkey vultures
loggerhead shrike
great egrets
catbird
orange-crowned warbler (Western) and maybe an Eastern but uncertain
pine warbler
western palm warbler
several alligators
a slider turtle

Gorgeous! Followed by a nice lunch at Macho's Restaurant in Millie, TX.

Nov. 3rd, 2010

Rachel Barton Pine & Ars Antigua concert

This noon I went to the concert by Rachel & Ars Antigua, in which they played the entire Four Seasons by Vivaldi on period instruments--fantastic! I first heard Rachel when she played at the Stulberg Competition in Kalamazoo.

 

Nov. 1st, 2010

Ann Arbor trip

We went to A2 this past weekend (by way of Bath and Dearborn). Our evening stop was at the Mardigian Library at U-M Dearborn to see the exhibition honoring Little House on the Prairie, by Laura Ingalls Wilder, called Laura’s enduring tale: Celebrating the 75th Anniversary of Little House on the Prairie . Bill Anderson (her biographer) gave a talk and answered questions, and it was all very fun. I loved seeing things like a hay twist, burned for fuel during the Long Winter, and a replica of Ma's china shepherdess, the notebooks Laura wrote her books in, letters between her and Rose about editing the books.... We came away with 3 new books about Laura by Anderson.

I had a good walk Saturday morning along the Huron River near Barton & Brede, visited with my sister in Waterford to do xmas shopping for my nephews, and then had a marvelous dinner back in A2 at Ayse's Turkish Cafe. Excellent chocolate-figgy-walnut pudding, and olive & pomegranate salad.

On Sunday, did more winter preparation in terms of yard work--composting the bucket-tomatoes, raking, hauling brush, etc. I made a little fire in my stick burner, my 1st and last fire, as now I'm ready to send it to the junkyard or give it to anyone who wants it.

Oct. 28th, 2010

3 year old conductor/violinist

Oct. 15th, 2010

Birdwatching

The juncos are back, in various plumages!

Oct. 10th, 2010

weekend

Yesterday I took my camera out on the bicycle & took a few photos along the bike trail--great colors. After lunch we went to Crane Fest (passed thru Nashville, Bellevue, & other small towns new to me). I was disappointed by the crowd of non-birders who wondered what the whole thing was about (no field glasses, brought their dogs, expected a petting zoo apparently) but I thought the art displayed by vendors was fantastic. The beauty of the cranes flying in and out was breath-taking, although I could have skipped the guy, who though informative, talked for several hours via mega/microphone. Hasn't he ever heard of noise pollution? I think that next fall we'll go on a non-advertised day in October, when there will be fewer people but they will be folks who enjoy the birds for themselves.

Oct. 2nd, 2010

Bird migration

In the past couple of weeks, I've seen magnolia warblers in their fall plumage, a yellow-throated warber, and black-throated green warbler at Blandford Nature Center. Yesterday on Maynard Ave and at Millennium Park, we spotted a pair of Sandhill cranes, a great blue heron, a pair of double-crested cormorants, several red-necked grebes, a flock of mute swans, and a lot of kildeer. There is also a great white egret or a great blue in white phase, but I couldn't see the legs to make a positive ID.

 

Aug 27, 2010

beechnuts

In Farmer Boy by Laura Ingalls Wilder, I remember that the family raked up beech leaves & nuts every fall and laid them in the barn for later sorting & peeling, and we have a large beech tree overhanging our deck. So I gathered the nuts & seed pods as they rained down around me last weekend. I found a couple of discussions on the web about them--hard to beat the squirrels, but I already had--best eaten fresh, so I tried one right away but it was too green! Other people said to wait until they turned a bit brown (but not too brown), so I left the others to ripen for a few days. There were notes about European beech nuts being much more bitter than American, which were supposed to be sweet. Several folks recommended roasting them--a coffee substitute can also be made from these or a fine oil with olive oil qualities may be pressed. The nuts are full of protein and other good thingies. So Amy kindly toasted them for me. Bitter! Bitter, I say! And sharp in the mouth!  I couldn't eat them. I put them out for the critters to eat, if they are so inclined.

Apr. 27th, 2010

The woods are overflowing

Today in Aman Park, these are the new bloomers: wood anemone, broadleaf toothwort (a new one for my "lifelist"), dogwood, wild lily-of-the-valley, star-flowered Solomon's seal, wild phlox, Virginia bluebells (at their peak), large-flowered bellwort, buttercups, wild parsnip, Jack-in-the-pulpit. The paw paw trees are almost ready to bloom.

In addition, these are still blooming: common violets, downy yellow violets, Canada white violets, spring beauties, squirrel corn, trillium (at its peak!), cut-leaved toothwort, false rue anemone, spring cress, wild geraniums, wild ginger, & blue cohosh (these last 2 are almost done).

Saw a little brown creeper & a large Hairy woodpecker.

April 30, GVSU ravines: mayapples

Apr. 17th, 2010

Even more wildflowers

mood: flowery

New additions spotted on my walk today in Blandford: squirrel corn, spring cress, wild geraniums, downy yellow violets, marsh marigolds, wild ginger, blue cohosh, and ground ivy. The ground is decorated!

Apr. 15th, 2010

Music discovered this week; new bike ordered

WASHBURN, Abigail: Abigail Washburn and The Sparrow Quartet.
She has a fantastic voice, & this cd includes both folk style songs--bright & quirky--& yodeling, a Chinese song, Appalachian songs, a Kazakz tune, lots of banjo & fiddle...

SCHULHOFF, E.: String Quartets Nos. 1 and 2; 5 Pieces. An early-20th-century Czech classical composer who used Eastern-European rhythms & tunes-- jazzy, syncopated, spirited.

Ingram Marshall: Evensongs / Entrada / In My Beginning is My End.  American classical composer of the late 20th-century, lyrical nature sounds and electronic music with traditional instruments--both minimalist & romantic.

Miguel Del Aguila: Clocks / Charango Capriccioso / Presto II / Salon Buenos Aires / Life is a Dream. Contemporary west-coast composer (2009 Composer of the Year). Well, I can't quite describe his music, so check it out for yourselves.

Listening to samples of Natalie Merchant's newest cd, Leave Your Sleep. What's to say? I still love her voice.

At the fitting yesterday, I discovered that my back won't tolerate the classical road-riding position any longer, so I am going to get a road/comfort bike from Giant, which I think might be the Cypress DX W (not sure, but it had 700 & 5 in it & it's red, upright with a comfy seat, 24-speed, with a decent derailleur). I get to see it Saturday.  

Apr. 13th, 2010

poetry reading

mood: inspired

Went to hear Siobhan Campbell, an Irish poet, read last night. As with most poetry, it was great live, especially with her comments. I talked to her afterward...went to the car and wrote myself some notes, then went back in to talk with her more. Her newest (3rd) book is focused on the theme of violence. The things that save it are her lyricism and imagery from nature. I asked about one poem and she said she is interested in how military personnel returned from war talk and express both the PTSD and the violence of their experiences in general. I had kept going back to the poem despite its violence and when she told me more about it, it made more sense. It's expressed in terms of a man beheading the flower blossoms of "weeds" (foxglove, a garden flower here but a weed in Ireland) with a hawthorn walking stick. I find her 2nd book to be more approachable. In some of her poetry, I heard echoes of Federico Garcia Lorca, Robert Frost, Mary Oliver.

Apr. 13th, 2010

April 10 wildflowers

Aman Park: all of the previous plus trillium, tons of trout lilies, cut-leaved toothwort, false rue anemone, carpets of spring beauties, bluebells budded. I spent an hour and 20 minutes trying to get some serious exercise but continually foiled by having to stop and take more photos of the flowers, testing my camera's limits. Flower macro, super macro, and super macro with LED. Flash on, off. Scene setting. Zoom limits. Very relaxing.

Apr. 5th, 2010

wildflowers spotted April 4

At Blandford Nature Center, I spotted both purple and white violets, spring beauties, Dutchman's breeches, bloodroots, and even a brave trout lily. Not spotted but I'm sure it has opened at Aman Park: the hepatica which was budded last week.

Other plants which I was interested to see were spotted waterleaf, ramps leeking all over, and bluebell leaves.

The neighborhood forsythia are amazingly full and bright.

Mar. 27th, 2010

Midori concert

Last night Amy took us to the GRSO concert with guest violinist Midori. We attended the pre-concert lecture, surprisingly by the conductor himself, with Midori stepping in to talk about the Walton concerto she was playing--a first for both of them to perform in public. So, that was fun to see her in ordinary clothing and talking extemporaneously. Then the concert was excellent--the empress insisted that we bring the little binocs--for which I was glad, when I could see Midori's expressions and movements "up close and personal" as it were. Amazing intonation, phrasing, sweet tone while passionate playing.... Awesome, well worth the price for the tickets.

 

Student Evaluations

At the end of last week I had a rotten day, made more so by reading student evaluations from a first-year writing class, in which several students commented that I was "too dry" and that I should be "more entertaining." Meh. I hate student evaluations.

When I went back and looked at the ratings they gave for how useful the session will be as they do the research required for the course, they were consistently 4-5 with a few 3's thrown in, on a 1-5 scale. OK, not so bad after all, if I focus on their perception of learning.

Today, I made more of a conscious effort to move around while I talked, making eye contact, and varying my voice pitch and tone. One of the students wrote, "she was the best instructor I have had since I have been in college" (this from a 5th year student). Pretty affirming. Still, I remind myself that student evaluations are very subjective, and wonder why they elicit such strong feelings in us. After all, can an evaluation form get at whether or not students really learn in these sessions? No, not really. So it's about the sense of self, and ego.

Yet this form is a required part of assessing "teaching effectiveness" at GVSU along with self-evaluation and peer-evaluation.

As far as assessing learning, professors who teach semester-long courses also have tests, essays, etc., to measure learning (if it's possible), and assessment to take an overall look at student learning within a program. The library isn't quite there yet. There just isn't a good way to assess student information literacy in the context of single instruction sessions. We have tried the SAILS test a couple of times as a program assessment but see some problems with it. There are now newer assessment tools and I'd like to know more about them.

In the meantime, I realized that it's also time for me to get some feedback from disciplinary colleagues again. What are their perceptions of my teaching effectiveness and student learning?

This journal forms part of my self-evaluation. This fall, I've been making more of an effort to write down the learning objectives and talking those over with instructors and students. Other than that, I just reach into the "bag of tricks" (aka "teaching toolbox") developed over 20 years and do my best....

FGC Gathering

Last week we attended the Gathering ("Quaker camp" in church terms) for the first time. This year it was at Bowling Green University in OH. It was a mixed experience.

The best parts were: the plenaries (pre-talk singing, George Lakey, Phil Gulley, mini-concerts); the week-long workshop (mornings 9-11:45; we attended the workshop on non-violent communication); and the people we met.

The worst parts were: the distance between buildings (7/10th mile from the dorm to the main building; 2 miles to the parking lot where our car was); the heat & un-airconditioned dorm; Amy's & my own injuries. I have a stress fracture in one foot, which is painful but not horrible; still, it swells after a day of walking around. On Monday of the Gathering, we were riding on a golf cart from our dorm to the dining hall for dinner; we were on the backwards-facing seat. My hat wasn't secured with the chin-strap & flew off my head. While I was contemplating options, Amy stood & stepped off the cart, went down onto the concrete sidewalk on one knee & bounced off it onto her back, hitting the back of her head (i.e., her superhero cape didn't work!). Results: a strained ankle, twisted & abraded knee, & mild concussion, which we didn't realize at the time. She insisted that she was okay enough to go on to dinner & the plenary, not to a doctor, & I wasn't insistent enough until Thursday that she see a doctor. We did get her knee cleaned up, & an energy-worker sought us out before the plenary. I felt guilty about my hat (& kept the strap on after that!), embarrassed about needing to ask for help, miserable with the heat, & grouchy about the noise & chaos of the dining halls. On Thursday afternoon, the doc wrapped her ankle & told Amy to stay off her feet & keep the ankle elevated & iced. We came home a day early, after our workshop concluded & we ate lunch on Friday.

I was grateful for the healing center, the volunteer doctor, the organizer who got us into an air-conditioned dorm (even if it was only for 1 night), the volunteer golf cart drivers (yes, we kept riding!), & those who helped me move from one dorm to another.

Our "lend a hand" volunteer gig was a couple of hours in the healing center (massage & energy workers had 10-12 tables set up in the room; compassionate listeners could use the loft). We "held the space in the Light" (aka prayed & meditated & concentrated on the energy flow of the space). I experienced really deep worship/meditation, & afterward experienced a couple of hours of serious grouchiness. Does this happen to others? Why?

The Lost Meaning of the Seventh Day

The Lost Meaning of the Seventh Day is by Sigve K. Tonstad, published by Andrews University Press in berrien Springs, MI, 2009.

The idea which touched me the most was that the sabbath is a "relational marker" (32) between God and the creation/humankind. It is God enjoying intimacy, feeling the world, recognizing, loving, and being affected by the created (34-5).God is expressing commitment to being with us as a priority, as a beginning. "The Sabbath brings a message of togetherness instead of separation...God's presence...wholeness instead of disintegration, other-centeredness instead of arbitrariness...." (514)

Also appealing is the idea that the sabbath interrupts clock time and returns us to observing the natural light (382), resetting our priorities from productivity and consumption to reconnecting to God, community, and the earth (384-5). "The need for belonging, the necessity of rest, and the encounter with something larger than oneself all find expression in the blessing of the seventh day" (505). It is "a missing zone of quietude and community, a time protected from commerce and commotion...." (502-3).

Finally, "entertain the possibility that God was singing at Creation" (515), especially as God "blessed the seventh day and hallowed it."

WILU 2010 Conference: Lightning Strikes/Birds of a Feather

"Lightning Strikes" were 7-minute presentations to the whole group. I liked the format.

"Building educational video games for non-programmers," Sarah Forbes, U-T Scarborough.
They used gamesalad.com (mac-based). The gamesalad creations can also become apps for the iPhone/iPad. Game Maker (Yo Yo Games) is the equivalent pc-based software.

"Legal Research Literacy--blended learning & learning community strategies," Julie Lavigne, Univ of Ottawa Law Library.
Use 2 models:
Learning community--in an upper-level course on legal research & writing-- team-taught by librarian, professor, and local practitioner (lawyer).
Blended learning--web self-instruction modules in Blackboard.

"Digital classroom for information literacy, " Janet Goosney, Memorial Univ.
Cutaway computer tables (I have asked her for an image to give to our new building committee).

"Birds of a Feather" were self-selected table topics.

Student-designed curricula discussion--could the students in CAP 115 create LibGuides themselves, one per section of the course? (No, unfortunately.)
At Dartmouth, a Library Resources box similar to that which Laura created for Blackboard is automatically added to all of Dartmouth's BB course sections. Could ours be?

One library has a student advisory committee to the library which reviews the website, etc., and they receive letters of recommendation from the library dean (or designate/s). To get student participation on the committee, they put a note on the library's website, advertise through Student Services, etc., and provide food at meetings.