December

At the beginning of each month at morning announcements I like to rattle off all the various proclamations that have been passed denoting the importance of the upcoming month. Alas, December is a bit barren. In the US, December is Safe Toys and Gifts Month, Bingo’s Birthday Month, and not much else. I guess the holidays crowded out the usual official proclamations this month.  December 1, however, is a pretty important anniversary day: in 1955 Rosa Parks was arrested in Montgomery Alabama for refusing to give up her seat and move to the back of a bus. This triggered a yearlong boycott of the city bus system that led to changes that ended racial segregation on city buses throughout the south. Far from being an isolated act of courage, though it certainly was that, Rosa Parks had the backing of the civil rights movement, members of which planned the non-violent action that resulted in changed laws. Would that others in conflict around the world follow the examples of Gandhi, King, and Parks... change might have come decades ago.

Teamwork

 It’s been a busy few weeks here at Nora, as I’ve been off chairing a Middle States accreditation team and the school has been preparing for Thanksgiving. For the first time ever The Nora School had a float in the Silver Spring Thanksgiving Parade, with mascot costumes bought by the SGA (thanks Patrick), a banner developed in the Graphic Design classes (thanks Trey), and the bus decorated by all the art classes (thanks Nic).   As I sat on the sidewalk Saturday I didn’t recognize the Nora bus until it was almost upon me!  Great teamwork by the Nora faculty and students last week!

Christina's Excellent Adventure Update, Nov. 4, 2012

Short-term Nora substitute teacher (and my personal daughter) Christina Mullen is in Burkina Faso, West Africa, undergoing her Peace Corps training. She's been sending updates via Facebook that I'm reposting here for students, family, and friends.

I feel like my previous posts have been, well sad. Here’s the thing—I’m genuinely extremely happy here. Obviously bad things happen, but they happen everywhere. And the good things massively outweigh any bad thing that happens, so this post is devoted to all the good things in my life right now:

1) Watching the sunset and moon rise as I take my evening bucket bath: words can’t really do the pure ecstasy of bucket bath after a long hot day justice, but it is absolutely phenomenal. And as the sun sets on one side of my shower area, the moon rises on the other. I want to say yesterday was the full moon and it was absolutely gorgeous. I love the full moon here because it completely illuminates everything and you really don’t need to use lights at night.

2) Giving Todd a haircut with 15 children watching and laughing—this was not only awesome because Todd REALLY needed a haircut, but because the kids thought it was so ridiculous. I think this was the first chance I had to talk with Todd one-on-one without too many distractions (our chats on the bike ride to and from Leo are often interrupted by other stagaires or large trucks and taxi brousses going by). I’m thinking of starting a haircutting business while I’m out here too, Todd isn’t the only guy who is starting to get shaggy.

3) Coming up with a great idea for our first sensibilisation and executing it. Today we had a “practice” sensibilisation—the word essentially describing a small workshop designed to educate community members about various health topics. Sensibilisations range from informal conversations with a few people to large formal trainings or community wide events with many people in attendance. Brittany, Donna and I had to do home hygiene sensibilisation to a group of women in Sanga. We decided to focus on handwashing, particularly emphasizing the need to use soap. To illustrate this, we had a volunteer from the group of 6 women in attendance, as well as myself, coat their hands in oil. We then greeted all the other women in the group in the local language (Nuni), and shook their hands. After, we asked the women to raise their hands if they had gotten oil on their hands as well. Every woman raised their hand. Then the volunteer and I washed our hands with just water. We shook everyone’s hand again, and everyone got more oil on their hands. Finally, everyone washed their hands with soap and water and greeted each other for the last time, with no one getting oil on their hands. Then, in French, we explained that the oil worked the same way as bacteria that is everywhere and that if you fail to wash your hands before eating, preparing food for your family, etc. you’ll be passing germs onto them and they in turn will get sick. We had a translator with us, which was extremely helpful. The entire workshop lasted about 20 minutes and probably wasn’t terribly successful in helping woman understand the connection between the oil and bacteria, but it was nice to come up with an original idea, plan, and execute it. The unsuccessful aspects will all become successful with more practice.

4) My friends here are pretty awesome: I can give countless examples, and I will. Abdul was insanely protective during a highly uncomfortable situation (which I won’t discuss because this is a positive post) and gives some of the best hugs in the world; Todd never fails to cheer me up, cracks my back all the time, and is literally always positive; Darius seems to find the moments where I need affection the most and appear out of nowhere to give it; Amber is always making me laugh and helps me to laugh at myself and pretty much every situation that might make a weaker person cry; David says the things I’m afraid to say, but am thinking and is one of the best listeners in the world (which is shocking for someone who talks so much); Gigi is one of the most caring people I’ve ever met and is the best listener in the world. There are many more examples, but those are the big ones.

5) Starting group bonding traditions: The village of Sanga gives goodnight and good morning hugs every day because I basically required everyone to do it. We were all craving affection, so now we all get it on a daily basis from our family away from home. I got the PCVFs (Peace Corps Volunteer Facilitators—basically the RAs of training, except that they change every week) to help me make mailboxes for every one (a la LeaderShape and NOLA 2011) so that we can leave nice notes and support everyone during the crazy time that is stage (pronounced staaaa-juh).

6) Surprising myself by being bold—case in point, last weekend, I went to the marche with Abdul, Chris, and Jonathan because we all needed things. I got a local vendeur to lead us around the marche to help us find a floor mat for Abdul, power convertors for Jonathan and myself, and a funnel for me to pee with. Let me say this again. I walked up to a perfect stranger and asked him, in a foreign language that I am, on a good day, barely comfortable functioning in, to help us find items and then bargained—like hardcore, no backing down, even walking away from bad offers—not only for myself, but for Abdul and Jonathan, in FRENCH.

7) The bike ride home: the sun is always setting behind us and is so beautiful, the ride is mostly downhill, and the conversations are always so wonderful. They are among the highlights of my day.

8) My Language and Cultural Facilitator (LCF) Armel, who is a 28 year old Burkinabe man who is one of my closest friends here. Our language lessons have quickly deteriorated into us talking smack in French, but his presence is so incredibly comforting. He comes to our homes a few times a week just to check in on how things are, converse with us in French, and solve any problems we may be having. He is the perfect combination of sassy and kind and has made adjusting to Burkina infinitely less scary.

9) The taxi brousse-again words cannot describe, so I’m posting some pictures with some more descriptive captions. But it was an adventure to say the least and while for some it was scary and uncomfortable, I could not stop smiling the entire ride.

10) The little things: omelettes at maison de femmes, peanut butter, doing yoga in the morning, watching the League at night, doing things slowly, language classes outside, getting packages/mail from my friends, switching off mefloquine and taking the less psychologically damaging doxy instead, singing to myself and everyone else around me, sleeping in my underwear at night, having time to read books, catching myself daydreaming in French, biking home with my youngest host brother, finally getting the Nuni greetings down correctly, finally figuring out how to pee, discovering anti-nausea medicine, working on my quote book, and many many more things. Life is good.

Christina Update, Oct. 14, 2012

Here's the first Christina Update after a week in Burkina Faso. She's based in Sanga (my spelling is a guestimate), a village 8 miles outside Leo (pronounced Lay-O). Half her training is in the village, half in Leo, which unlike Sanga you can actually find on a map. It's a 45 minute bike ride from Sanga to Leo.   About a third of her cohort is training for agricultural work, with the rest (about 20 volunteers) training for health care. The training for the two groups is separate, so they don't see a lot of each other.  The PCVs (Peace Corps Volunteers) are based in two other villages in addition to her village, which is hosting 9 other people.  This is the first time the Peace Corps has had training based in Leo, so everyone on both the American and Burkinabe side is still working out the kinks as they deal with a steep learning curve.  Almost all training is conducted by the Burkinabe, not by Americans, which she appreciates.  In fact, there are very few professional American PC staff in Burkina (just two if I understood correctly).

Christina got in last Friday and spent Saturday training.  Her regular schedule will include a half-day training on Saturdays in Leo, after which the PCVs will likely hang out in Leo, shop, and go to the internet cafe. Sundays are her day off, though today she had an assignment to map out the village in which she's staying.  So far the two LCS (PC staff) have checked in with each volunteer each day to see how they're doing. Most of the other PCVs are having some trouble dealing with village life, but Christina's camping experiences are paying off as she reports sleeping well (though waking up in a pool of sweat each morning).  It has been in the high 90's every day, and she's drinking lots of (filtered) water. One PCV has already headed home, though the other PCVs thought this girl might have trouble when she showed up for her Burkina family "adoption" ceremony in stiletto heels!  Chris is awakened each morning by the roosters and the first call to prayer, and her day ends when the sun sets, though she remains up reading past dark (around 6:30pm).  Her time is four hours ahead of our time.

She has a nice bike, with gears and everything, but she had to get a men's bike because the womens' bikes were all too small.  This makes riding a bike in a dress something of a challenge, which she is still working out. No women in her adoptive family wear pants, so she believes they are pretty conservative, though probably not Muslim, as they don't observe the calls to prayer from the Mosque, which is next to her family's compound.

Her family lives in a compound with several mud and concrete houses with metal roofs, none of which have running water or electricity.  She has her own small hut.  There is a central courtyard in the center of the houses, and a smaller courtyard behind the main house.  Surrounding the other courtyard are the houses of the other wives and their children (some of whom may be the father's grandchildren... she's only been there three days and doesn't fully understand the family dynamics).

The father speaks French, but no one else does, which makes communication a challenge. The rest of the family speaks Millie (sp) which may or may not be the tribal language spoken in her eventual placement. The family is very reserved, and she has found it disconcerting to be treated as an "important guest" and thus not allowed to do chores or otherwise help with family business. The family eats after serving her, and so far (in three days) she's had spaghetti with anchovies, millet porridge, tok (fufu) with okra sauce, and tok with fish sauce and big chunks of fish (fried, bone in, skin on).  The food has been a challenge, and her care package requests include things to help the food taste better. She said the best part of her day is the bucket bath, which is pretty much self-descriptive. 

With the difficulty in communication, Christina feels somewhat isolated within the family compound The children don't speak French, and are either curious about or scared of her, as they've never seen a white person.  Going to the bathroom (a latrine) after sunset can be a challenge, as she has to shoe the goats out first. The compound has chickens, roosters, and donkeys in addition to the goats.

All in all, Christina reports that she is very happy and managing to adjust as well as can be expected, and better than most other PCVs.  She sends her love to all her family and friends!

Christina's Excellent Adventure

While not, strictly speaking, a school issue, one of our (briefly hired) substitute teachers has joined the Peace Corps and is now in Burkina Faso, Africa, on her 27 month tour of duty.  The relevance to this blog is that she's my daughter Christina, and her excellent and challenging adventure is the culmination of years of education for both her and her parents.

Christina graduated last May from Dickinson College with a degree in African Studies, so it is fitting that she wind up in Africa. After a second summer teaching basketball on a Crow Indian reservation in Montana, she subbed a few times in September at Nora before heading to Burkina.

As we hear from Christina I'll post various updates about what she's learning and doing which will hopefully prove instructive, and occasionally entertaining, as we live vicariously through her. Approaching middle age, my own life has smaller, and thus perhaps sweeter, adventures, nothing like the grand scope of saving the world.  But it's thrilling to see another generation come along with the enthusiasm and idealism to take on the big challenges with verve and energy, if bittersweet as our little girl goes off to change the world.

John Cage's Rules for Students and Teachers

Given to students and teachers at the Merce Cunningham dance studio in New York City.

Rule 1:  Find a place you trust, and then, try trusting it for awhile.

Rule 2: (General Duties as a Student)
          Pull everything out of your teacher.
          Pull everything out of your fellow students.

Rule 3: (General Duties as a Teacher)
          Pull everything out of your students.

Rule 4: Consider everything an experiment.

Rule 5: Be Self Disciplined. This means finding someone wise or smart and choosing to follow them. Te be disciplined is to follow in a good way. To be self disciplined is to follow in a better way.

Rule 6: Follow the leader. Nothing is a mistake. There is no win and no fail. There is only make.

Rule 7: The only rule is work. If you work it will lead to something. It is the people who do all the work all the time who eventually catch onto things. You can fool the fans-- but not the players.

Rule 8: Do not try to create and analyze at the same time. They are different processes.

Rule 9: Be happy whenever you can manage it. Enjoy yourself. It is lighter than you think.

Rule 10: We are breaking all the rules, even our own rules and how do we do that? By leaving plenty of room for "x" qualities.

Helpful Hints:
     Always Be Around.
     Come or go to everything.
     Always go to classes.
     Read everything you can get your hands on.
     Look at movies carefully and often
     SAVE EVERYTHING. It may come in handy later.

A Wonderful First Day (for the 51st time, which isn't so wonderful)

The first day of school is much like the first day of a new year, full of promise, enthusiasm, and visiting with old friends.  Unlike the mid-winter bacchanal, however, these days are long, the sun is warm, and many of us are not quite ready to give up on summer. Having school start before Labor Day gives us the luxury of easing into work before the rest of the world gets busy, which can be a nice way of slowly reactivating the motors of thinking and learning.  We had a great first day at Nora, full of joyous (those returning) and nervous (those new to us) adolescents about to take the next step on their life's journey.  We are privileged to be part of that journey, and while we may be an important part, it is only for these few years. These curious and lively people will soon move beyond us, off to college, and lives, where we hope our lessons will last.

Yesterday was my 51st first day of school, going back to kindergarten at Warrendale Elementary School, then on to Central Junior High, Waltham High, and New England Conservatory. After graduation I was teaching at five parochial schools, Palotti High School, Bishop McNamara High School, then on to WEHS (Washington Ethical High School) and Nora. Indeed, there hasn't been an August or September since 1961 that I haven't had a first day of school. And of course there have many been others... seeing each of my three children off for their own first days, from kindergarten to college.

It's a bittersweet time of year. Summer is ending, nights bring a twinge of autumn, and those students we worked so closely with last year, and in 1991, and in 1981, are off creating lives of which we are not a part. Even with our own children, as they go about constructing adult lives, we are but spectators and visitors unless we're invited in. We are glad to see them succeed and hear about their adventures, but I think we miss not only being with them, but our own youth. Did any adult have the wisdom to appreciate what we had when we had it?  

We cannot step in the same stream twice. The water that was there a moment ago is not the water that is there now. So we eagerly embrace those who come to us looking for renewal, for change, for growth, and we hope to provide them the same challenges, mentoring, and nurturing that The Nora School has been known for since 1964, just a few years after my very first first day of school.

Two weeks to go!

Hard though it may be to believe, two weeks from tonight you'll have finished your first day of school! If you missed the mid-summer mailing, here's what you need to know...

Dear Students and Parents,  

   Hard though it may be to fathom, our summer break is halfway over!  Here at Nora things have been very busy with admissions interviews, painting, and moving furniture. Marcia has been busy with admissions and registrar work, and Mara has ably guided the building renovations. Hopefully your summer has been busy as well. 

   I know of one student who has been busy... congratulations to senior Carina Hernandez, the first member of the Class of 2013 to finish her senior year community service project. After spending a week at the Columbia Lighthouse for the Blind camp, Carina's senior year became a great deal less stressful! I hope that other seniors are following up on our advice to complete your 32 hours of community service during the summer.

  There is a great deal of information in this mid-summer email, so please read it carefully.

Summer Work.  The Annual Summer Brainwork can be found at http://www.nora-school.org/students/summer-work/. There are three parts to the summer work: a reading response, a writing assignment, and a math packet. I'm eagerly looking forward to my first day book group, although hardly anyone ever picks my books!

Enrollment Forms. All students need to have the enrollment forms back to the office by August 27. Returning students do not need to worry about the Immunization Form, but all other forms need to be updated. New students need to submit the Immunization Form as well as the other enrollment forms, which can be found here. For those needing to review the Student, Family, and Community Handbook, you can find it here.

Medication Administration Form. The State of Maryland says that we cannot dispense any medicine, even Tylenol, without a doctor's order. If there is a need to take any medication during the school day, even over the counter medication for headaches and cramps, we must have this form signed by a doctor. The form can be downloaded here.

Juniors. For the Junior Retreat in October at the Sheridan Mountain Campus, you will need the Medication Administration Form for ANY medication you take, even those you take in the evening. It would be good to get this taken care of during the summer to avoid a last minute rush.

Computers. Next school year we will be a BYOD (bring your own device) school, where students will need to have a laptop or netbook computer with them in class. Here are a few guidelines as you look at this:

  -If you brought a laptop to school last year, use the same one.

  -Do not buy an expensive netbook or laptop. It is only needed for internet access and basic word processing, spreadsheets, and presentations, and it may take some abuse in the backpack.

  -PC or Mac is fine, but PC's are cheaper and are easier for us to troubleshoot.

  -Netbooks are small laptops which have better battery life, likely negating the need to drag a charger around all day. Try one first to see if the keyboard is comfortable.

  -Trey, Norman, and I have all used tablets (Android and iPad) over the past few months, and have found them unsuitable for creating work. We strongly urge you not to use a tablet (try typing a 5 page paper on one and you'll see what I mean).

  -You do not need to buy an office suite. Download the free Libre Office, which is compatible with MS Office, or use Google Docs, which is free with a free Gmail account. We also like the free app Evernote, which provides a way to capture notes, thoughts, and ideas and share them between your computer, smartphone, and other devices.

  -Graphic design software (Photoshop, etc.) is only used in class, where the software is already installed, so there's no need to purchase the software unless you're really into graphic design. If that's the case, get in touch with me for educational discounts. If you wish to have photo imaging software on your computer, Picassa is a good free alternative for editing and sharing.

  -Netbooks and laptops can be purchased almost anywhere: Office Depot, Staples, MicroCenter, and Best Buy are local options. It's worth trying out the keyboard to see how if feels, particularly for Netbooks.

  -If purchasing a netbook or laptop is a hardship then we can lease an old school laptop for the year. Please get in touch with me or Mara if you are interested. Note that the care of the leased laptop is the student's responsibility.

First Day. The tentative first day schedule is attached. This is an orientation day where the new students get to meet each other, everyone gets to meet their new teachers, and the first academic assignments of the year are turned in (the Summer Brainwork).

First Week. The August and September calendars are attached, and the full year calendar can be downloaded here. The All-School Hike along the Billy Goat Trail, along with the photo contest, is a fun way to end the week. Further details on Back To School night will follow once it's a bit closer, but we always begin with a pot luck feast that I'm sure you'll enjoy.

School Supplies. We will give all students a Nora assignment book on the first day of school. Students should bring a divided binder with paper and dividers on the first day, along with pens, pencils, and an inexpensive calculator. 

Electronics. Please put your name on everything, especially calculators, phones, iPods, and laptops. A reminder that phones and iPods should be off during class time unless a teacher explicitly asks that it be on. Laptops should be used only when appropriate for class.

Sports. Soccer practice will begin right after Labor Day on Tuesdays and Thursdays. Once the game schedule is set we'll let you know. There are no tryouts... everyone makes the team and everyone gets playing time. We'd like every student to participate in one sport (soccer, basketball, volleyball, or softball) each year.

Please call or email if you have questions about any of this information. Six weeks to go... I'd better get the darkroom cleaned up!

Sincerely,

Dave

Congratulations to our friends at the Capital Area Food Bank

We look forward to helping you in your new space next year!

Summer Discombobulation Part 1: Time

I suspect that all our students, particularly those who just graduated, have recently experienced the discombobulation that comes from having one's personal time/space continuum suddenly upended. I know that for me the weeks and months leading toward graduation gave a clear focus to daily life, with major goals and tasks clearly evident in my work.  On the Monday following graduation, however, time seemed to have suddenly shifted, with dozens of small clerical tasks (long put off) begging to be done.  Indeed, with only a week before the National Small Schools Conference I did not have the luxury of further procrastination, but I missed having the BAG (Big Audacious Goal) of sending another class off into adulthood, ready for college and prepared for life. Updating the email list for 2012-13 just isn't as exciting!

Remarks to the Class of 2012

Well, here we are at that most highly anticipated moment of the graduation ceremony, the head of schools’ remarks. 

I promised the seniors that I would keep my talk to less than the 80 pages of their yearbook, and I just barely met the requirement.

During morning announcements each day we note historical events of great and small importance, as it gives us a sense of our place in the march of history as well as in the world. There seem to be no world holidays today, but it is the birthday of Ida Saxton McKinley back in 1847. She was once famous as the first lady of the United States. Frank Lloyd Wright was also born on this day in 1867, perhaps a better known name, especially to those of you who were with me at Fallingwater a couple of weeks ago.

But Fridays are better known for the tradition, particularly dear to the seniors, of a Friday story that they’ve hopefully brought home each week, so I’ll leave you with one last little bauble. 
As we’ve gone through the year I’ve offered at least thirty puns to you on Friday mornings.  Pun after pun, some you got, some you didn’t.  I was really hoping that at least ten of them would make you laugh, but, alas, no pun in ten did.

Yet another reason they’re glad to be graduating.

Soon to be graduates, today marks one of the few times in your lives that everyone will get together just for you.  Birth, graduation, marriage, death are the biggies, and you probably won’t be there to enjoy the last one, so you’d better enjoy this!

You are here because of the work of many people, most notably your parents and teachers.  I would like to recognize them now.  From the Nora faculty, Mara Nicastro, Scott Madden, Chris Conlon, Nic Galloro, Hedy Szanzer, Patrick Vongchan, Trey Harris, Norman Maynard, Courtney Davis, Ave Luke Simpson,

I’d like to particularly thank the senior advisors, Nic Galloro and Scott Madden for their conversations with the seniors throughout the year, and particularly Scott for all his efforts to help the class plan the next stage of their lives.

We have one faculty member noting a milestone in her Nora career today, as this is the fifth year she’s had to listen to me blather.  Janette is celebrating her fifth anniversary, and while we feel like we’ve already given her a husband, we also have another token of our appreciation for her efforts.

The members of our Board of Directors support and guide the school behind the scenes, giving generously of their time, treasure, and talent. Joining us today from our Board of Directors, Robert Herman, Beau Kaplan, (Matt, others?).

And finally, you need to thank your parents, as they have supported you far longer than we have, and will continue to do so, despite what they’re hoping.  I would like to recognize those whose dedication to you included changing your diapers, reading you bedtime stories, and paying Nora School tuition.  Please stand and accept our congratulations as I call your name.

Russell and Nancy Adise
Linwood and Dianne Brown
Thomas and Kathy Bryan
David Carroll
Darryl and Elizabeth Chang
Michael and Sarah Friedman
Gary and Keri Jacobs
Stephen and Cynthia Johnson
John Joyner and Angela Venerable Joyner
Paolo Lek ki and Alesandra Rovescalli ROVES-KALLI
Peter and Deborah Pappas
Mark Paster and Doreen Cantor Paster
Gary and Barbara Reguerin
Richard and Andrea Sherman
Jeff and Michelle Kuhn
Trent and Anne Tschirgi
Susan Okeefe, Tom Eagles and John and Mary Ellen Whalen
William Wolf and Elizabeth Davenport

Soon to be alumni, I am hopeful that you will take away from today, your last day at Nora, the same precepts I discussed with you on your first day at Nora.  It may seem long ago, but on your first day, and on each first day thereafter, you went around to get lockers, photo ID’s, and to write down your goals.  You also spent time with me discussing the school rules, which can be boiled down to four simple sentences that will stand you in good stead throughout your lives.  I’m going to warn you, there are quizzes for a few of you in my next remarks.

Show up on time.  Do your work.  Take care of your health. Treat others with respect. 

Look back on your time at Nora and honestly assess to what extent I was telling you the truth.  Did you show up on time?  Did that make your life easier or harder?  What are the consequences in the next part of your life for showing up late? What does it say about being trustworthy? 

I can tell you that there are tremendous benefits to showing up on time, being a person of your word, having others see you as reliable.  Noelly and Kylie, in Peace Studies this spring you read The Road Less Travelled by Scott Peck.  How did that book begin? ...  The first sentence is “Life is Difficult.”  I don’t think you’ll find many people here today who would disagree with that statement, but I’d like to follow it up with a question, “Now What?”  OK, life is difficulty, now what?  You still need to show up. If you have to show up, show up on time.  It will make life slightly less difficult.

Do your work.  Same questions.  How was life when you did your work?  How was your life affected when you didn’t take care of business?  What happens in the world when you drop the ball?  What happens when you follow through?  And what kind of work will you do?  Nick, John, Nate, maybe we should have a little quiz going back to your freshman year religion class, what is the Fourth Noble Truth of Buddhism? 

If you don’t remember, it’s the Eightfold Path, one part of which is Right Work. As you do whatever work is before you as you go through your life, whether schoolwork or office work or mechanical work or the work of raising a family, is the work, and are you, making the world a better place?  What are you consciously doing to ease someone else’s burden?  Might I suggest that next week you cook dinner for your family,  or perhaps do the laundry? Making the world a better place can happen in small as well as large ways. In fact, if everyone were to work on the small ways our world would be a much better place.

Take care of your health.  Stay sober, because it’s hard to have any lasting success if your brain is messed up. Exercise and eat healthy food, because you’ll feel better, have more energy, and be a happier person. Monster Energy drinks, ho-hos, and giant Slurpees as an occassional treat are one thing, as part of your daily diet they’re not so great. Take care of your health.

Treat others with respect.  Yes, I know it’s the Golden Rule, but there’s a reason it’s called Golden.  Treating others with respect doesn’t only mean your friends, or people you get along with, it also means those who rub you the wrong way and get on your nerves.  This doesn’t change outside Nora, there will always be people you find annoying. One of them might be your roommate next year!  This is where your room for growth lies. Paula Weymiller says that the person who annoys you the most is like a little angel sitting on your shoulder, telling you to grow up, and that you have the most to learn from that little angel and that annoying person.  In the words of Plato, “be kind, for everyone is fighting a hard battle.” Treat everyone with respect.

There is an old Persian proverb: If life throws a knife at you, you can catch it by the blade or by the handle.  A vivid image.   The Nora School exists because life, especially for teenagers, is always throwing knives.  Whether the promotion of drugs, sex, and greed in movies and on television, rigid approaches to education fostered by the standardized testing of No Child Left Behind, hormones and pesticides in our food, anxiety about our economic future, depression about our economic future, or the normal stresses of daily life and living in our families in an ADD culture, it’s a wonder that any of you make it to adulthood.  On that cheery note, let’s look at some of the non-Algebraic lessons I hope you take from Nora as you move on into adulthood.

Staying in bed -catching the knife by the blade.

Daydreaming in a classroom with 30 other students, -catching the knife by the blade.

Daydreaming in a classroom with 7 other students -catching the knife by the blade.

Self-medicating -catching the knife by the blade.

Refusing to take help from those who care for you -catching the knife by the blade.

3 hours of Facebook followed by 4 hours of Minecraft... well, you get the idea.

Some of you have experienced catching the knife by the blade, and you know how well that worked out.  I believe that during the time you’ve been with us you’ve learned to catch the knife by the handle, at least most of the time.  If you take this with you, you’ll make out well.  How did you catch the knife by the handle, and how can you continue to do so? 

As the sign outside my door says, Smart People Ask For Help.  Indeed, if I have had any success in 21 years as Head of The Nora School, it’s because I was smart enough to hire folks smarter than I, able to do their jobs well, and I ask for them for help.  Next year it will be up to you to chase after the help, rather than having the help chase after you.  Asking for help, and indeed recognizing when you need help, is catching the knife by the handle.

Some days you just have to get out of bed and put one foot in front of the other. When you have a problem, face it.  Engage the issue, whatever it is, rather than retreat to bed, Facebook, Minecraft, sex, drugs, or other compulsive and blade catching activities. Your teachers and your parents don’t always have wonderful days, Professor Guttman, President Obama and Dave Mullen all have days they just don’t want to face.  Yet successful people are successful because, despite whatever it is that’s weighing them down, they swing their legs out of bed and put one foot in front of the other. 
Sometimes you can tell they’re having a tough time, but usually the movement creates the inertia necessary to be productive, if not at 100% then at least better than 0%.  So when you’re down, get off your butt and do something, preferably something that makes the world a little bit better.  Taking action is catching the knife by the handle.

Recognize the need to pace yourself.  As you look back on your time at Nora, remember that you never had more than two classes in a row before a break.  You’ll note that the school year was broken up with retreats, field trips, all-school activities, community service, and class trips.  That is purposeful, as life is lived in the margins as well as the main text, and the margins are often what give the main text it’s richness. We never neglect the main text, which for us is learning, nor should you in your future endeavors, but be purposeful in creating renewal for your body, mind, and soul.  Whether that takes the form of getting enough sleep, eating healthy food, contributing service to others, be mindful of the choices you make, and the reasons you make them.  This will give you the stamina to continue catching knives by the handle.

And again, do your part to make the world a little bit better.  There are lots of knife throwers out there who have  political or economic interests in tearing things down, denigrating others, and making sport of bullying.  You live in a coarse culture, but you’ve gone to a counter-cultural school, where these activities go against the grain. Take that with you and spread it, not through great acts of charity, but through small kindnesses.  Often when we’re busy catching knifes ourselves we forget that all those around us are catching their own knives.

Mother Teresa tells a story of bringing food to a poor family: “When I came to that family I saw the faces of those little children disfigured by hunger.  I gave the rice to the mother. She divided the rice in two and went out, carrying half the rice. When she came back, I asked “Where did you go?”  She said, “To my neighbors, they are hungry also”.  I was not surprised that she gave, poor people are really very generous. I was surprised that she knew they were hungry. Generally we’re so focused on ourselves we have no time for others.”

So be aware of the suffering of others... the kid in your class who learns differently, the kid in your dorm who is homesick, the kid you work with who talks too much.  All are busy catching their own knives, and the grace with which you treat them says everything about you.

I think you’re ready to move on.

Our goal has been to help you to pursue possibilities. The broad liberal arts education that you received at Nora has opened doors to a variety of possibilities, but note that the harder you worked the more possibilities you had. Now it’s up to you to find those passions worthy of your pursuit. Here is where the fun, and the fear, come in.  You don’t have to know your passion right now, most of you will change careers at least once before you’re my age. But right now you’ll get to study and work at things that are interesting to you, and that’s the fun part of moving past high school.

But try to take courses and have experiences outside your areas of interest as you pursue your further education, as you never know what new endeavor might spark a new passion. Be open to serendipity, when a door opens go through it and see what happens. Don’t be afraid to say “I don’t Know,” and remember that “smart people ask for help,” you’re smart, ask! Think about others, as you are, in terms of the rest of the world, in the top 10% of wealth. You have an obligation to others, and helping others can be a great antidote to overinvolvement with yourself.

Class of 2012, we’ll miss your different ways of thinking and your unique approaches to the world.

Allen - you’ve always had a logical reason for every decision you’ve made, usually contrary to the ideas of your parents and teachers. I hope that you’ve come to see that pursuing your passions and meeting your responsibilities is not an either/or choice, but a both/and possibility.

Sarah - You’ve learned a lot socially over the time you’ve been with us, and we’ve enjoyed your flute playing in the band. You’ve taken advantage of the lessons we’ve tried to teach, and have a good foundation on which to grow at Shepherd next year.

Rollin - As a quite observant presence with us you’ve added a great deal to our community. Your caring presence, especially toward your female classmates, has helped them get through some rough patches. You’ve plugged away at the academics, and have asked for help when needed. Good job, have fun in Iowa.

Daphne - As you’ve matured with us over the years you’ve softened up, a bit, in dealing with others. We hope you will continue to grow in empathy for others as you learn to work and live with them in dorms and classrooms in the years to come.

Shana - We’re not sure where the next neighborhood hangout will be once you’ve headed off to college, but you’ve been the social butterfly that has kept everyone going throughout your time at Nora.


Ariana - hypothetically... no, not hypothetically, in reality you’ve really blossomed during your time with us, and now that you’ve hit your stride it’s, sadly for us, time to go. I don’t think I’ve ever seen a student both dance at the prom and play in the outfield in the same dress.  We expect to hear great things when the class of 2013 visits Shepherd College next September.

Erick - I hope that you find the answers to ALL your questions over the next four years at UMBC. I know that Nic is ready to work for EF Tours after answering your inquiries throughout Europe over these past four years, and we’ll all miss your infectious enthusiasm, and the top hat!

John - It’s been wonderful to see you mature from the goofy freshman who wouldn’t or couldn’t  take notes in Religion class to a serious student with a clear vision of the future for himself.  We wish you the best as you pursue the possibilities opening up before you in one of the few careers that can’t be shipped off to another country.

Nick P. - You managed to get through four years without ever eating lunch, and you’ve been an exeplary student with perhaps the highest GPA of any Nora grad. We hope that you won’t be too tough on yourself, as you’re a great kid and a superb student, and the classes you now get to take going forward are mostly those that interest you. College is a lot more enjoyable than high school.

Carin - You’ve come a long way from the soccer player who would stomp off the field if she missed a kick. Who would have thought you’d be sharing the Athletic Award at the end of your senior year?  Be forgiving to yourself, as life is never a series of uninterupted successes, and your ability to bounce back is at least as important as your ability to succeed on the first try.

Greta - Sadly we only got to know you for this one year, but you’ve been a great addition to the class of 2012. We’re glad you’re able to pursue your artistic passions, and we look forward to your first solo exhibition.

Kara - It’s been a long road to today, and you owe your parents a huge thank you for working so hard to get you to this point. You now have possibilites open to you, and it’s up to you to take advantage of them without the advantages of Homework Club hanging over your head!

Nate - You’re welcome. Remember that second, and third, and fourth chances don’t come your way everyday, and be sure that you offer those same chances to others that you live and work with at Eckert and in your life.

Kylie - You’re the only student who cries as easily as Hedy, and I expect you both to be teary-eyed as you leave the stage today. We’ve enjoyed your poetry, or at least the cheerful ones (there were some cheerful ones, weren’t there?), and how well you integrated various people into your social network.

Nick L. - How nice that Bard is getting another Bard, and another Nora student. Unfortunately, you’ll be in New York, with Tebow, not terribly hospitable territory for a Celtics and Patriots fan. We look forward to your continued growth intellectually, and hope to see you in Courtney’s Nora fantasy football league next year.

Noely - Like Greta, we’re sorry that you were with us for only one year, as just as we’re getting know you it’s time to leave. We hope that as you pursue you passions that you look back on your time at Nora as a model for how caring adults work together, and that you create your own community that sustains and supports you.

Rachel - As you pursue possibilities you might consider the circus, because you really seem to enjoy the high wire act!  We hope that as you pursue the possibilities open to you that you find one that has you jumping out of bed and arriving early every day.

Danny - In many ways you’ve been the “straw that stirs the drink.” You’ve always been kind to your classmates and worked hard with your teachers, a model of what we’d like to see in all our students. Remember not to leave your speech until the last minute, and we wish you the best, and a great alarm clock, as you pursue your college education.

Class of 2012, you have worked hard to get here.  You are survivors.  Not only did you survive middle and high schools that were big, impersonal, and bureaucratic, you survived Nora, which is no easy task.  Not everyone can handle it, but you did.

Seth Godin posits that “small is the new big,” and as graduates of one of the smallest schools in the country, you should understand that it’s a big accomplishment to graduate from a small school. It’s a small accomplishment to find a clique of people you get along with in a big school, but it’s a big accomplishment to get along, intimately, with everyone, even with people who annoy you and get on your nerves in a small school. 

It’s a small accomplishment to hide in the back of a big classroom and avoid the teacher’s radar and do the minimum necessary to get by, but it’s a big accomplishment to push through your resistance and actually do the work, because you know that in Chris’s small classroom your missing homework will be noticed. 

Small is the new big.  By doing something small, like saying hello and making eye contact with the cashier at McDonald’s, you can make a big difference in someone else’s day.  We all have our daily frustrations, but by doing the small kindnesses to others we can, collectively, make a big difference in the world.  By cutting another person some slack, you can make a big difference. 

There is often a misperception that being in a small school like Nora is easy, because the teachers know you and work with you and give you lots of chances, and all of that is true.  But equally true is that going to a small school is hard,  because the teachers know you and work with you and give you lots of chances.   There’s nowhere to hide if you haven’t done the reading, and your math homework always gets checked, and when it’s your turn to present there’s no one to hand it off to. 

Your parents hear if you missed the trip to the Smithsonian, and they know when you’re not doing your Pre-Calculus homework.  Courtney notices when you show up late to Physics, and Patrick notices when you didn’t do your Chemistry homework.  It’s tough to stand up to that amount of scrutiny, but you have. 

You’ve survived not only the classrooms,  but also the whitewater rafting of your sophomore year, the high ropes and goal setting of the junior retreat, and writing your own recommendations and sharing your life stories on the senior retreat.  You set up your own senior community service, late though it may have been for some of you, and you learned to balance two of the most precious gifts of adulthood: freedom and responsibility. 

The freedom part is easy, every teenager gets that.  The responsibility part is a lot harder.  Not all that many adults get that, as witnessed by the various crises on Wall Street and on Capitol Hill.  Learning when to have fun and when to work, when to sleep in and when to get up, finding where the boundaries are, and which ones it was safe to cross, these are things that your parents and teachers have to juggle every day.   

You managed, if imperfectly, those four lessons with which we start every school year.

You’re now at the end of a long road. Ralph Waldo Emerson had this advice: “Finish every day and be done with it. You have done what you could; some blunders and absurdities no doubt crept in; forget them as soon as you can. Tomorrow is a new day; you shall begin it serenely and with too high a spirit to be encumbered with your old nonsense.”           

Guy Kawasaki, one of the early employees at Apple, says to “Pursue joy, not happiness. Sure, the future is bright and all that stuff, but life is not uninterrupted, pure happiness. You will go through difficult times. But what balances and overcomes difficulty is episodic joy. Joy does not come from the possession of material things—it comes from experiences such as falling in love, making close friends, creating or doing things that delight and help people, and eventually raising children, especially if they move out.”

Life is difficult, but today is a joyful day.

On behalf of the entire faculty of Nora I wish you many joyful episodes in the years ahead, and hope that by bringing happiness to others you may construct a fulfilling life for yourself.

Congratulations.

It's been a long time!

Wow, how the urgent squeezes out the important, and how the important squeezes out the "nice to do." I can't believe it's been 3-1/2 months since I updated this puppy, as we've had so much happening at Nora over the past few month.  But like the tides, no sooner is one event finished than another is before us, leaving little time for reflection. But yesterday's graduation, an occasion of mandatory reflection, was a nice opportunity for me to think back on the lives of our Class of 2012 as they close the book on their mandatory schooling. I'll post my remarks soon, but it was with a great deal of pride that I saw them off to their next steps: Bard, Shepherd, UMBC, MC, and other colleges, including art schools and automotive schools.  It's a list as varied and diverse as the class itself.  Photos and remarks will follow, but if you'd like to relive the slideshow, you can find it here. Hope you have a great weekend!

Maurice

Another hero of my youth passed away this weekend at the age of 78. Maurice Andre, like Maynard Ferguson, was know to us trumpeters by first name only. Whenever we would pull out our piccolo trumpets and attempt the Brandenburg or any other virtuoso piece, the cry would go up... "Maurice!" Here's a video of Maurice performing the third movement of the Brandenburg pack in his prime.

Dyslexia and Ansel Adams

This week my photography class has been watching a film about Ansel Adams, and they've learned that he was a hyperactive child who suffered from dyslexia. Despite these challenges, through the love and patience of his father, he was able to pursue his passions for music and later photography. His school was a year-long pass to the World's Fair in San Francisco at the age of 12... how many of us would give our 12 year-olds carte blanche to go to the Smithsonian on their own every day for the next year rather than attend school (not to mention what the state of Maryland might say about it). It's a useful reminder that the skills required for academic success are not the only skills required for life success, and that many of the traits that can make school difficult for our kids are indeed great gifts in the wider world... if only we have enough love and patience to weather their adolescence!