As many of you will recall, last spring we had to cut down a whole collection of trees. They were mostly shoestring acacias that grew like weeds over the past ten years and became problematic in a variety of ways. The ones on 40th Street were constantly interfering with the electrical lines and SRP ended up removing them. The trees along the west wall of the parking lot grew large roots that were about to disrupt our main water line into the building, in addition to knocking over the block wall. During a wind storm one day a large branch broke off and nearly damaged a parked car. Others along the west end of the building were leaning toward roof damage. Although we have been tree huggers at the Seed since our beginnings in 1977, we made the choice to cut the trees and replace them with other varieties that are friendlier to our school environment. It was an unpopular, yet necessary decision.
Our neighbors to the west now have several new trees in their yard. We gifted them the trees so we could benefit from their future shade. Soon vines will be planted along the outside of our 40th Street wall, and eventually we’ll add other trees along the west side of our building. Also on the playground you will notice piles of logs cut in smaller sections, our latest addition of natural materials for the children to play with. The sections are all different shapes and sizes, ready to be stacked and arranged into brilliantly creative arrangements. Some will find their way to outdoor classroom areas and others will remain on the big playground next to Gwen’s Castle.
We’ve been back to school just a few days and already there is evidence of the children’s work with the logs. The piles of cut logs have already started to spread out and are beginning to be infiltrated by red bricks and sticks. I imagine in a week or so there will be houses, sculptures and other structures scattered around the playground. At the Seed we start up where we left off and keep going. We are resourceful, making use of what is available. We build each school year with veteran staff and students as the foundation, adding fresh energy and creativity via the recent additions to our staff and student body. Remnants of the past become linked to the present and future as we create a new expression of Awakening Seed. It’s a time filled with big possibilities, these days of starting up. As we move into the school’s 37th year, it is sure to be a memorable one, log piles and all.
Very cool, Mary. I remember playing with pieces of logs like that for hours on family vacations up North. Can’t wait to see what the year brings.