Peribology = The Study of Etymology on Symbolism

“Enraged, Diana turned Rhodanthe into a rose and her suitors into thorns.”*

*http://www.ecbdflowerstore.com/108103.php

Is That a Sheep?

I shared my drawing of llamas today with my fifth graders.

llamas

I got a rousing, “Not bad!”

For some reason, they loved yesterday’s 5 minute timed writing prompt:

“Describe how to drive your teacher crazy.”

Ahhhh. Kids.

Each morning, I open my drawing book, 20 Ways to Draw Everything. I make myself draw whatever is in front of me. I am always tempted to draw the easiest figures. I might start with the easiest, but I know that I will not get better if I stick to the simple ones. My initial goal was to draw all 20, but because I have only 45 minutes to draw before I go to work, I choose about six: a few easy, a few difficult.

It’s become my morning meditation.

Dawn Delight

It’s pre-sunset and I navigate the dark to the kitchen,

boil water, grind beans and allow the two to fuse in the French press

Open the drawing tablet and book – smile

choose a page arbitrarily and put pencil to paper

Embrace the Dark

the good thing about the night

is that morning always comes

perhaps if you hug your nightmares

and laugh in their face

they will shrink back

in fear of you

2/3 of a pun is P U

Child: “Mom, did you know the Smiths are pescatarian?”

Mom: “Really? I had no idea. Which church do they attend?”

Are You a Fungi?

Mushrooms are like people: Some are nourishing and others are toxic.

C’est La Vie

Student Council member: “We didn’t get out Student Council t-shirts in time for Club Picture Day?”

Me: “No, they haven’t arrived.”

StuCo member: “Wow. That’s a problem. That’s a real issue.”

Me: “No, it’s not. We’ll get them when we get them. We will take our pictures wearing what we’re wearing and smile. It is what it is.”

At first blush, this sounds like a negative and cold response. But diving deeper, you can see that “It is what it is” is actually a great way to deflect negativity. Why stew about something that we cannot help? Why feel bad and see “no t-shirts” as a problem? There is no solution except to accept it, happily.

This doesn’t apply to areas where there might be a solution of course. I am a proponent of seeking creative solutions to any and all problems. But in cases where there is nothing to be done, why fret?

This One Was Fun

“A shark’s sense of smell is so acute that he can detect a single drop of blood in an Olympic-size swimming pool.”*

*http://animals.mom.me/sharks-catch-prey-7470.html

Image

Joy