Dear Teach: TED talks

Tuesday, July 9, 2013

Dear Teach:The Calm Before the Storm

Hi Boys and Girls,

Have you ever heard the expression the calm before the storm? Well, wiktionary defines it as "A period of peace before a disturbance or crisis; an unnatural or false calm before a storm."

And, evidently the expression has also been used in a song by rock band, Fall Out Boys "...Calm before the storm set it off, and the sun burnt out tonight..."

But according to the Discovery Channel this old sailor's adage used for generations is explained by: ...people believe that the worst storms are immediately preceded [ come before] by a period of calm, smooth weather. The reason for these periods of calm is simple; storms are caused by an updraft of moisture and heat coalescing [ come together as one] in one area. As storm clouds form, some of the moisture-saturated [filled with] air is pushed out of the tops of the highest clouds in the storm system. As this air descends back down, it begins to compress, becoming drier and warmer. Warm, dry air is more stable than cool, wet air; as a result, the air that initially formed the storm also acts as a temporary shield, preventing more air from entering the storm cloud formation and producing the "calm" before the storm...

And so it was that not too long ago I noticed not only a calm, but the sky ablaze in a magnificent red. The entire sky was lit in red orange hues. Immediately I thought, " Oh, the calm before the storm, soon we'll have a rainstorm." I remained outside and began to take photos of the sky. And much to my amazement the sky filled with cloud formations and collections of color arrangements I had never before seen, at least not in my own backyard.

The following day, I viewed a TED talk titled Camille Seaman: Photos from a storm chaser. And it was after I viewed this presentation that I realized the greater meaning of what I had seen on the night of the calm before the storm. Camille Seaman asserts:

" ' Everything is interconnected. As a Shinnecock Indian, I was raised to know this. We are a small fishing tribe situated on the southeastern tip of Long Island near the town of Southampton in New York. When I was a little girl, my grandfather took me to sit outside in the sun on a hot summer day. There were no clouds in the sky. And after a while I began to perspire. And he pointed up to the sky, and he said, "Look, do you see that? That's part of you up there. That's your water that helps to make the cloud that becomes the rain that feeds the plants that feeds the animals...' "

" '...What really excites me about these storms is their movement, the way they swirl and spin and undulate, with their lava lamp-like mammatus clouds. They become lovely monsters.
When I'm photographing them, I cannot help but remember my grandfather's lesson. As I stand under them, I see not just a cloud, but understand that what I have the privilege to witness is the same forces, the same process in a small-scale version that helped to create our galaxy, our solar system, our sun and even this very planet.' "

Here's her Ted Talk:

Here are a few of the images taken on the night of the calm before the storm:

Beyond the collection of hues and the profound understanding that all life is interconnected, one revelation remained, I waited and waited, but no storm [a few raindrops, but never a storm], instead a display of awe, one of nature's artistic magnificence for all to see.

Be well kids.

The Teach

PS. Anyone of these images could be the backdrop for a story, a setting, a painting, someone's adventure. Maybe even yours!

Tuesday, January 8, 2013

Dear Teach: Hearts

Hi Boys and Girls.

I am reminded of a wonderful TED talk I recently viewed on YouTube, titled: Israel and Iran: A love story.

I have long come to believe you are our greatest assets. Why? Because your energy and excitement transcends most all things; your sense of humor and sense of acceptance goes undaunted for a long, long run; you so very quickly forgive and forget. These are but a few characteristics of children, until as we grow something happens to curtail them—could it be we become much more serious about life and all its issues, and soon forget that child is forever alive within us? Perhaps.

Having taught children for many years I can safely say they have been my greatest teachers.

Our humanity is a love story, as are all of you. It seems to me everyone does a lot of talking about many things, yet still, global problems persist and so do microscopic problems that grow until they too become global.

I wondered about a line written in one of my all time favorite children’s novels titled, Tuck Everlasting. “The ownership of land is an odd thing when you come to think of it. How deep, after all can it go? If a person owns a piece of land, does he own it all the way down, in ever narrowing dimensions, till it meets all other pieces at the center of the earth? Or does ownership consist only of a thin crust under which the friendly worms have never heard of trespassing?”

As simple as this sentence may appear, I felt it to be profound because it can be applied to the issue of hate. How deep does hate go? Does it go to the center of the earth until it seeps into our very core, our very being? Until we no longer exist?

Well, the sentence and its meaning is up to you to consider. But here’s a chance for you to make a small difference. Watch the TED video I’ve linked above. Then, if you agree and are moved to do some small act to show love to all humanity, post your heart in a window where you live. Let’s see what happens.

Here’s a photo of a heart in one of the windows of my house.

And if by now you haven’t read Tuck Everlasting, I would strongly urge you to. In fact, you should read Search for Delicious and Kneeknock Rise.

Both of these novels are also Babbitt's literary works, that eloquently tap issues of war begins over silly things, and it is OK to believe in whatever makes you happy!

Be Well.

The Teach

PS. If these two unlikely creatures can get along, then surely so can we!

Moli and Tiger-Lily