School Starts

For our young "Waldorf-inspired" charter school, the first day of classes means a gathering of wide-eyed little ones in a circle of redwoods, with loving parents and other family and friends surrounding them, while the Executive Director introduces the Educational Director, who introduces the teachers and School Board President, who introduces the School Board. After the introductions, there is the repetitive singing of a simple song that has the words "journey" "sun" and "stars" in it, a group reading of some poetry about strength and the universe, and a story told by the First Grade Teacher about a little flower gnome.

Okay.

So here's where I have to jerk my writing to a stop and remind myself of Suzanne's words of wisdom regarding not putting unkind things in her blog.

Okay.

So, um.

Let's just say that a shorter flower gnome story might have been equally effective.

And that my mother, who had thought I was kidding when I said we would perhaps have to sing Kumbaya, agrees that I'm possibly too "mainstream" to qualify to have my kids at the school. I mean, I wear non-cotton garments, for example. And I don't always shop at Whole Foods.

(Mom also said it's the most cheerful group of parents she's ever seen, and she wants to know what else they're growing in the garden besides sunflowers...)

But the beauty of such a warm, loving, open community, is that they have a grasp on inclusiveness that is strong enough to allow for refined-sugar eating folks like us to participate in their vision of the future.

Thank God (or Mother Earth, or FSM or what have you) for that.

Because, really, the song was kinda nice.