Monday in the kindergarten class was a spontaneous preview of our summer art camp. The class has been studying Ecuador, guided by their student teacher who is from there. As part of their study, the Galapagos Islands became a topic of discussion. This grabbed my attention and brought back strong memories of a student who . . . Read More
Often a study begins with a question. “Where does hummus come from?” “What does candy do for your body?” “How can we turn into food detectives?” Questions like these are surfacing around the Seed as we prepare to embark on our annual school-wide nutrition study. We’ve had many successful studies in the past and expect . . . Read More
Now that I’m back from vacation and inspired by all the great food we ate on the east coast, I wanted to experiment with baking vegan bread. The first loaf I made actually turned out pretty well, except the pan was too small. The top crust created an overhang that resembled a breaded version of . . . Read More
Each week I aim for 500 words and generally, I’m in the ballpark. This week is an exception and as you read on, you’ll see why. Even though this week’s is longer, I hope you’ll stay with me because it’s about our three speakers at the Seed’s 40th birthday celebration. We selected three inividuals to cover significant focus . . . Read More
It’s Thursday afternoon and I’m sitting at the table where a significant chapter of the Seed’s history began. It’s the same Starbucks table where, on Christmas Eve years ago, Danielle and I first entertained the idea of her eventually stepping into the directorship of Awakening Seed. It seems like such a long time ago, yet . . . Read More
Last week’s Earth Day celebrations delivered a wealth of blogging topics. On Friday morning, as the Toddler 1s practiced placing recyclables in a bin with a huge recycling symbol on it, the Seed was visited by Channel 3 for a segment of Good Morning, Arizona. The interviewer, Lina deFlorias, was masterful with the children. She started . . . Read More
Boxes arrived this week filled with our special edition 40th anniversary t-shirts. The design took an interesting detour right before the final proof stage. Originally, an illustration of the earth was inside the zero. While working on a draft for the mural design, we played around with making the zero into a peace sign. The . . . Read More
Monday was National Sibling Day. I’m grateful to my three siblings, each for his or her specific contribution to my life. Admittedly, I was at times the bossy older sister, and it has been noted that my two youngest siblings were camped outside my bedroom counting the minutes till I packed up my things and left . . . Read More
Seed magic was alive and well last night. Onstage for the first time in South Mountain High School’s auditorium, our Seeds put on a show that warmed hearts, dazzled eyes, delighted ears, and offered a message of hope. With Mem Fox’s book Whoever You Are (http://memfox.com/books/whoever-you-are/) as a starting point, one-year-olds through 4th graders danced . . . Read More
On Tuesday morning, the day of America’s notorious election, I took my daily walk. For a brief moment I gazed at the sky to see a cloud formation that reminded me of Arizona’s flag. At that particular time I wasn’t even thinking about the election, I was reflecting on a fleeting but meaningful friendship I’d . . . Read More
Sunday was the perfect day to plant a garden. In the morning it rained and later in the day it happened again. By the time I was ready to plant my seeds, the soil held just the right amount of moisture. The sky was full of dramatic cloud formations and by late afternoon, the light . . . Read More
This day is finally here. Since my last post, I’ve traveled Scotland, returned to the Seed for the last day of summer art camp, then flew to Minnesota for a few days with my parents. My return to Phoenix on Sunday evening was not without its share of drama—our plane was due to land in . . . Read More