Spring is my favorite time of year. Really, it is. My sister always said it was because my birthday is in May, but really it is because the drabness of winter is gone and the earth comes alive once again! I love the green grass, the tulips and daffodils, the robins chirping each morning, and the warmth of the sunshine on my face. I love the smell of new-mown grass and the scent of lilacs. I like the sounds of the outdoors through the open windows. Sitting in our new sunroom brings more contact with the outdoors as I find myself distracted by watching and listening to the activities outside the many windows instead of grading online assignments on my laptop.
It is no wonder, then, that two of my favorite American authors are Emerson and Thoreau. It is not a surprise that I pushed for a Nature unit when planning the GT curriculum. One of my favorite activites for the GT class was the annual camping trip to McCormick's Creek State Park where we 'communed with nature' for one fall weekend. A winter trip to the Dunes was a 'one time only' event for one class, but it was invigorating to stand on the shores with the crisp wind from Lake Michigan showing its force. Trips to the outdoor lab with my regular English 11 classes were favorite activities--and the writing the students produced always had a freedom and sensitivity that their other attempts did not.
Ah, yes...spring has arrived. I want to clean out my flower beds, plant pansies, and retrieve my garden art from the storage area. Can I use that as an excuse for not grading Pod assignments? Hmmm...better not! But I can sit in the sunroom while I grade!
I saw daffodils today. I love daffodils, to me they are the very essence of spring.
ReplyDeleteWhen all at once I saw a crowd,
A host, of golden daffodils;
Beside the lake, beneath the trees,
Fluttering and dancing in the breeze.
I love Wordsworth, he was a genius! I love this visual image so much, it really says 'spring' to me.
Wordsworth is the best!
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