Trim the Sails

Every year for the last 14 One Little Word has been the first assignment of the new year in my sixth grade English class. The premise is deceptively simple: find a single word that means something you want for the year ahead, post it to the discussion along with a brief explanation. 

I love this assignment because it offers a soft reopening to school after the holiday break, it is easy and engaging, and it also often results in some of the wisest and most honest writing my students have done so far in the school year. 

This time was no exception; one of the most popular words of the year was friendship along with several poignant explanations about how much the kids miss their friends and classmates. Other popular words were kindness, happiness, and joy. There were also several riffs on success and winning, and a few honest confessions that more responsibility was necessary along with some patience and change. 

In general, though, there was less variety than in past years, and much less creativity, too (although one student did choose creativity as her word.) I was a little disappointed by this latter development, I love it when kids choose crazy words that capture something special about them and what they hope for. 

When I mentioned the assignment to her, my sister shared with me an Instagram site belonging to artist, poet, and podcaster Morgan Harper Nichols with a hundred words on loop. The idea is to take a screenshot as they play, and that will give you a word to contemplate in the year ahead. The graphics and music are wonderful, and the words are inspired, too. 

My word was wind, defined as "the perceptible movement of air, especially in the form of a current of air blowing from a particular direction".

I think I'll keep it.

Meeting Adjourned

Nothing beats a pandemic like an hour and a half on FaceTime with your siblings!

As such, be it so resolved:

• Veterinarians may want to rethink their business model.
• Raccoons and storm drains are definitely a thing. 
• Any words of the year should be illustrated.
• We will find a vacation place for TWO weeks this summer.

A Shot in the Arm

The end of the winter holidays is always a little sad. Anticipation of celebration and time away from work fuels the days from early November until the last of December. And then? And then. 

Even so, we find our way forward: longer days and the promise of a new year glimmer on the path ahead illuminating the way through winter and into spring. At school, our classes become communities, and at home, movies and dinners and trips to the beach offer fun and distraction.

But this year leaving the holidays behind and heading back to the long days of online teaching weighs heavily and just putting one foot in front of the other feels so hard. And what is there to look forward to?  

All Dressed Up and Nowhere to Go

The only thing that motivated me to get up and out on this cold, wet day was the promise of trying out the new rain gear I got for Christmas. I figured if I wanted to spend time outside every day, in this neck of the woods I would need to be prepare for rain. So I suited up to take the dog for a walk this evening-- slicker, boots, AND the new pants, all cinched and velcroed for maximum dryness. Heck, I even put a raincoat on Lucy. And when we stepped out into the drenching 38 degree rain, and the wind caught the waterproof nylon of my jacket, I was nothing but comfy cozy and ready to venture forth.

Lucy? Had other ideas. Once she had completed her short to do list, just a number one and a number two, rather than putting her tail up ready to prance through the foul weather, as I was, she strained on her leash and pulled in the direction of home. We didn't get too far before I gave in. Even dressed for the weather as I was, I could see the reason in her request.

The Beholder

Thursday is recycling day in our complex, and today, the first Thursday since Christmas was a big day on the curb. The rule is everything must be out no earlier than 6 and no later than 9 A.M. so when I took Lucy for her first out of the day, we walked by several brown bags filled with cans and bottles and many, many broken-down boxes. The one that caught my eye? Barbie's Dream Camper, tucked between an empty case of wine and a Chewy box. 

Fifty years ago Barbie's Country Camper, orange and yellow with a cool California vibe, was parked under our Christmas tree. In retrospect, I know it was meant to be my wow gift, everything any eight-year-old girl might ever dream of for the holiday, something so amazing I never knew I wanted and so never asked for. But I was not a Barbie kind of a little girl, and so I was a little underwhelmed. My friends thought it was amazing, though, and I understood how lucky I was to have received such a thing, bragged about it a little even. 

By where the box was placed, I knew exactly what little girl in our neighborhood got the camper under her tree this Christmas. She's a pistol of a 6-year-old kid, all go go go in her pink and purple sneakers and tutus. 

I wonder if she liked her camper.

Fulfilling the Promise of the Gifts

I got a few fun things for the holidays-- among them a hand-forged Japanese bread knife and some copper canelé molds. Just preparing to use those beautiful tools as they were meant to be has given shape to the last few days.

First, feeding the sourdough levain for the bread, coaxing it back to life after a week in the refrigerator, then weighing, mixing, turning, resting, raising, forming, fermenting, and baking the loaves with the anticipation of finally using my knife to slice through them without crushing or tearing has been very gratifying.

Likewise, scraping vanilla beans and steeping them in milk, whisking eggs and sugar and butter and flour together, tempering the mixture with the hot vanilla milk and stirring in dark rum all so the batter can sit in the fridge for 48 hours until it will be time to coat my molds with a combination of beeswax and butter before filling them to bake into that classic French confection of crackly caramelized crust and tender custard within has also been a fine way to spend my time.

The Power of Words

 Lucy was not sure at all about the family approaching us on the trail this afternoon. Catching sight of the four of them with their adorable dog, she tensed and let out a low growl. 

"Look!" called one of the little girls. "That dog looks like a big version of Boomer!"

She was right, our dogs did resemble each other.

"Awwwwww," her sister and mom responded. "She's so cute!"

It must have been the tone of voice, or perhaps it was the sheer admiration, that disarmed Lucy, but whatever it was, she relaxed her shoulders, lifted her tail, and pranced happily past.

"Have a great hike!" the dad said us as we passed him on the trail. Boomer just wagged his tail.