Eight Days

I am not a numerologist or interested in astrology, but I did have eight days of almost pure joy and sunshine during my spring break. I had anticipated it for so long and was more than a little doubtful that this new adventure would live up to my high expectations. As my wise professor once quoted from my Africa adventure thirty plus years ago, "If you have no expectations, you will never be disappointed." I have learned not to mind a little disappointment because I am somehow hardwired to have high expectations of life and of my students.

This trip was one that exceeded my expectations. That makes three (sorry more numbers). The first was what I simply call "17." It was my 4400-mile solo motorcycle trip in the summer of 07. I had always wanted to see the rocky coast of Maine that my hero, Rachel Carson, wrote about. I had read all of her books in college and always wanted to know more about her and see where she wrote her stunningly accurate and engaging books. I was not disappointed. I saw the house where she wrote Silent Spring in Silver Springs, MD. When I walked up the drive two chipmunks greeted me and in the back near her study a deer stared me down with quiet grace until I tried to take a photo. My skin kind of got goose bumps with her presence. I photographed every inch of the outside of her house and grounds to include the window of her bedroom where she was taken from us much to young in 1964. I found out later that when she testified before Congress about her findings in Silent Spring she was battling cancer very stubbornly and gallantly and privately - no one had a clue what she was going through on the inside as she stood fast for the birds and all of life on the outside. In the driving rain - on a motorcycle I might add - I finally got to see the summer home where she penned, Under the Sea Wind, I think, in Maine. The locals at the general store on Southport Island still remember her. On the porch of that house dripping wet, I had to clear my memory card to snap some photos of the terns on that rocky shore. I later kept from punching arrogant New Yorker guests who interrupted the kind clerk and me to preview which room they would pick at Newagen Inn where she also stayed and where down the lane her ashes were scattered on the waters by the rocky shore. They were two other fine ladies I got to visit also to include one of my dear college friends and her husband in Plattsburg, NY. I also got to cross Maine, New Hampshire and Vermont in one day and ferry ride across Lake Champlain to have a 30-year overdue reunion. So that was 17 in a brief.

Then there was "10." I had been accepted for an Earthwatch mission to Arizona to collect caterpillars. I had decided not to go since we were moving and since I would have to miss three days of professional development and the first two days of school. It only took the first five minutes of a required three-day summer academy to convince me of one thing - GO! This blog started with those ten days. That experience inspired me to write an NSTA Toyota Tapestry Grant, which I received officially at an NSTA reception at the Philadelphia Convention on the eight days of wonder trip.

Now for the eight days. Day One: Boston. My buddy, Rob, delivered me to the airport.



(Not Hugh Grant's brother)

I was off to Dallas, yes, and then Boston. My Earthwatch friend, Jen Wren, and her friend,


Jen Wren and Holly

greeted me and we had dinner at the oldest restaurant in America, serving since 1836, the Union Oyster House. Day Two: The next morning I visited North Bennett School in Boston where my son may attend in the fall for piano tuning and repair. Then I took a six-hour train ride on a beautiful day with breathtaking views along the way to include the shore at New Holland, CT. I also met a delightful four year old

and her new friend from South Africa who was reading to her in the diner car.

Days Three to Five and a half were spent in Philly at the Convention and around town. I got to have a fabulous reunion with Earthwatch buddies Sassy and Designer Girl,

I had a marvelous behind the scenes tour at the American Museum of Natural History. I got to meet lots of new folks:



(I walked fourteen blocks out of the way to the wrong Sheraton - Rachel gave me water and understanding - Steven let me borrow his subway pass to go back and get my cellphone that I had dropped and "lost" there but kept by the railway guy when i called my phone.)



(This is what my knew chef at the hotel friend did when I said our president needs our help - the democrats and republicans just need to grown up and feel the love. Notice his hat.)

I saw lots of exhibits in the exhibit hall to include getting home delivery of the times and a "free" NYTimes blanket for my wife. Free Giordelli chocolates on the street corner




(From these coeds)




(After sharing my favorite chocolate moment on video and getting ten more chocolates, I met this guy who also has a March 21st birthday and is almost as young as I.)

Two Philly steak sandwiches at the Sports Bar since they put the wrong cheese on the first one, A nano technology workshop that has probably led to an all expenses paid one week summer institute in Amherst, MA where one of my astronomer mentors has designed a circle of the sun on the quad that I heard on the 365 days of astronomy pod cast in 2009 and which one of the labs Mr. Hamblin, the math genius teacher across the hall, and I tried together with my physics class on Friday.



Part of the Nanotechnology Lab. I am counting the number of drops in a 50:1 alcohol to oleic acid solution so we can measure the height of a one molecule of oleic acid skipping across the water and forming a perfect circle with its mates.

Video of circle dance from one drop of solution

Whew. I also attended a reception for all Tapestry Grant winners, did Bikram Yoga for 90 minutes in 105 degrees, met a gifted teacher from Alabama, and journeyed to New Jersey as my sister queried, on purpose.


The other half of Day Five and Day Six were spent in Millville, New Jersey.



On a hike we stopped by the lake (sunset pictured above) - Designer Girl, Sassy, and Nat Jat.

We had pizza on the lake at sunset with Designer Girl's husband, Rich the Judge, and Sassy and Nat Jat who joined us from PA where she is hopefully the director of a YMCA camp now. On the next morning, my birthday, and the seventh day without a cloud in the sky, I was taken at my request to the beach at Ocean City. Ah, the wonders of this world. And a lunch I had a wonderful chicken salad with my favorite ice cream milkshake - Breyers Cherry Vanilla - and with friends. Does it get any better?


Without knowing this my three friends gave me a quote that has been in my classroom for 15 years from one of my heroes, Albert, "Imagination is more important than knowledge."


The last hour MST of Day Six and Days Seven and part of Eight were spent in Albuquerque, NM where I joined my wife who received the Foundation Fellows award with 31 other excellent piano teachers from across the country to include Nelita True whom Donna and her students and I heard in recital at Millsaps last fall, pretty good company, at the annual Music Teachers National Association Banquet. That day we toured old town and saw a beautiful church that has having worship since 1704 or something and lunch where I had the best tamale I have ever eaten at Church Street Cafe. I also met the Rattlesnake museum proprietor who left teaching to do something not so dangerous - collect live rattlesnakes.


In front of the church.

Day Eight my friend picked me up right on time at the airport and treated me to coffee and conversation as he and his wife graciously listened to my adventures (and received a few little happies from my trip).

Now that is exceeded expectations. Life is good.


P.S.


Driving toward my next adventure - notice I am not texting and have both hands on the wheel.

Letting the light shine

Kenya Davis, Ferderica Cobb and Jon Luckett

I know I have been doing this awhile and yesterday was a big clue. The younger teachers were beside themselves anticipating spring break and the kids were ready and the young principal thought he had it in the bag when the opening bell sounded.

For me it was another day to enjoy and savor – seriously. A few weeks ago I got a profound sense of my finitude – not anything particular happened – I did my usual morning reading and meditations and journals, I did my usual school preparation, I did my usual greeting of the classroom animals and checking of the greenhouse plants. I did my baking of two dozen big cookies for sale to finance ZOO 122 and greenhouse. Then sometime on the way home from school – it was like the road to Damascus or something. A very strong sense of my own finitude and limited time here came over me. A very strong sense of how much I needed to continue to share the wonders of this world with others and to share the light and not hold any in reserve also came over me.

I have been doing just that. I ordered some little pots with seeds and planting peat pods and seed packs the other day. There is a different color pot and different seed for each month. Instead of lining them up along my window just for me – I decided to start giving them away. It has been a huge treat for me. Sometime I may share the details.

In the midst of all this, I have found a new friend of the classroom, Elaine Towner, and she has introduced me to two 4H people who will help me get the teaching resources I need for Zoo 122 and Greenhouse.



On Wednesday she drove three of my students, Kenya Davis and me to the University of Mississippi for the annual Junior Science and Humanities Symposium (a 6:00 am departure). It was my first time in six years to go, and I was delighted to see the quality of student presentations are still extremely high. Eight research papers are selected from across the state and the students present them to a panel of four judges and their peers, teachers and parents. We have hope for our students presenting in the future. As a mandatory part of the trip I took them to Square Books and they were very impressed as was I.

See if you can find one of Faulkner's famous references

Tuesday I will be leaving for the National Science Teachers Convention in Philadelphia and enjoy a reception for the Toyota Tapestry Grant winners, lots of great food and sights and workshops and a reunion with three of my Earthwatch buddies. Sunday, my birthday, I will leave for Albuquerque to see my wife get a national award at the National Music Teachers Association convention. A week from Wednesday I will have a whole lot more light (and photos) to share.

In the bleak midwinter

Just as the purple pansy pokes up from the snow in the planter by the greenhouse in the midst of the gray, dreary skies, I got great news via email last week. Yes, as the song goes in the bleak midwinter, frosty wind made moan, earth stood hard as iron, water like a stone, snow had fallen . . . That is pretty much how it goes many days at VJ. Everyone who cares about learning and kids knows all the unnecessary hard as iron obstacles to growth placed in our way by life circumstances and sometimes well meaning leaders. It is in this setting that good news came which makes it great news. I received the Toyota Tapestry grant to collect caterpillars all across Madison County, and my students will be leaders and mentors for other students in those other, oft mentioned, oft awarded schools.

Toyota Tapestry Grant

And as if that was not enough, I got a call on the intercom to see a parent first thing Thursday morning. I thought the worse and wondered who wanted to discuss what I had done to their poor child. I was wrong - in the bleak midwinter, I met an enthusiastic parent who brought her daughter's supplies for our Haiti relief effort. She was gone from school on a field trip and told her mother, "You make sure you get these to Mr. Banks." I was stunned. I had fussed at my classes not because they had not or could not bring anything to help our sisters and brothers to the south who are still living in tents. I had fussed at them because they said they would and did not. As if that were not enough the parent came to my room and got the full tour of the plants and animals and was as enthusiastic as I and said, "You make a list of everything you need and do not hold back, and we will make sure you get it next year through 4H and the PTA." An angel just showed up at my room in the bleak midwinter and hope continues. Further she helped fill out all the paperwork so that her daughter (pictured with the largest tomato on the right) could participate in the regional science fair and even enlisted her VJ graduate daughter to help.

Despite my best efforts to pack it in, I keep getting called back to the greatest opportunity (not the easiest or most lucrative) to help get kids excited about and keep learning for a lifetime about the wonders of this world. Yes, even in the bleak midwinter it is still teaching.

P.S. The telescope is ready for night viewing and a solar filter is ordered for day viewing.

Life after death

First row: Shiquita Watkins, Alicia Martinez, Kiera Draine, Arshunti Perry
Second row: Tevin Grayson, Mr. B., Alexander Pan (exchange student from Austria),
Jonathan Luckett
Full album
The cosmic forces have forgiven me, perhaps. Maybe Sister III's soul was not severed with body. Three events seem to confirm these hypotheses. Or to say it another way, three signs of light come forth after the sad snake situation.

First, I emailed the director of Rainwater Observatory at French Camp, Jim Hill, to see if he would come by and make a recommendation for a possible telescope location at our remote site. He graciously agreed and came by and looked over our grounds and gave a recommendation. Jim Hill is one of the most knowledgeable and gracious people I know about astronomy and life. He like I is all for convenience and the best location is about thirty meters from the greenhouse door. He gave a great compliment to my very introductory biology class(one of three where they put kids not ready to take Biology or the all important state test) that he was escorted into 20 minutes before the bell by the assistant principal, "Is this an AP Biology class?" I guess I will quit calling them boneheads.

In this ultra frugal business of education you never hesitate to ask. He had mentioned grants in his very informative free newsletter (check out www.rainwaterobservatory.org). I boldy asked if with his grants there was anyway he could get us a telescope. After a thoughtful pause, he said they had an eight inch Cassegrain that they were not using and we could use it.
Call it a gift, a loan or whatever - VJ is getting a telescope. As I told Dr. Robinson, the assistant principal, "we are going to have it going on out here." Our principal said we would have to get a picture of that and signed off on a PO for a solar filter and battery pack to get it up and running for both nighttime and daytime viewing. He also gave me permission to go pick it up on the afternoon of our next staff development day, February 15. Go, Mr. Mumford.

Second, one of my introductory biology students came in one day to class (to say she has issues would be great understatement) and was looking at one of the contest posters I have had on my wall since August. One caught her eye and I said why don't you do a research project. To my great surprise she was very interested. One thing led to another and she saved the application form to a jump drive during class, read a preliminary experiment from a Strive to Thrive Lab manual I had gotten a grant for and is planning a workshop for science club members and their parents to carry out her research. Pinch me - am I dreaming or awake?

Third, I finally summoned up enough courage to take some of our students to the Mississippi Mathematics and Science Competition at Mississippi College (in another lifetime and school, I took kids there for ten years and we did quite well). I wanted to go last year but there were just too many obstacles - personally and professionally. I have kicked myself all year for not giving my top physics student who had a 32 on the ACT and is a freshman at Harvard an opportunity to compete last year. I promised myself not to do that again. I kept my promise this year and seven of our students participated (two backed out at the last minute). Four participated in the team competition


VJ Team2010

that is still low tech with questions on an overhead projector and with answers wtitten on pieces of paper. Only the captain is able to raise his or her hand with the answer. Spotters determine who was first, second or third up. We left at 8:30 (thirty minutes late) but still got there in time to take the test and got back at 5:40 in the evening of a Friday - it is not an easy road. (I did get to share my MIC project with the bus driver who has three daughters, and she was interested). And the students watched both the team finals and the awards ceremony with interest. None of them made the stage, but I remind myself and them you have to start somewhere. My first year as cross country coach we only had three runners (five are needed for a team) for our first race. Three years later we won fourth in the state. The same was true for academic competitions in my career.



Blast to the past

Indeed life goes on and hope resides at VJ.

Careful Where You Cut

Putting this off does not change the reality. Sister III, our third snake, is dead. She did not die by neglect like the first who escaped and showed up the last day of school only to die over the summer due to overheating. She did not die by bacterial infection like the second one who never had a chance since she never ate while with us for less than two months and had to be taken to the vet. Sister III died under my supervision while we were searching for her.

Just when I thought we were going to be successful in our care of a snake things turned. Sister III loved to hide from the beginning. She did the same thing at Petsmart and kept her same behavior with us. She escaped once and we found her as documented in a previous blog. Then she went a week without eating. Then she found a way to get into her plastic tree and hide. I did the flour routine again and she came out one night, left a trail and there was flour around the hole where she went back in. Almost a week went by and she did not come back out – not even when I put a mouse by the hole and left it out overnight. I was afraid she had died or was sick inside the tree.

I had the bright idea to enlist two of my students who were in my class for Falcon Break – 45 minutes of remediation torture – while the rest of the students have break in the gym. We probed the tree with a wire and did not stir the snake. We decided to cut off some of the branches. Just as one of the branches fell Bobby said there she is. He spotted her in the hole. I crafted a hook with the wire and excitedly drew her out. The excitement ended when I saw her on the table with no head. Yes in our enthusiasm we had cut off her head. My good idea went bad. Be careful where you cut.

The only thing to do was make it a learning experience and teach the students how to mix a 9 to 1 water to formaldehyde solution and preserve her for observation and learning. The students later had all sorts of questions and we made the most of a bad situation.
Not my finest hour as a teacher. We will not have any more snakes for some time.

The cycle of life and death is quite a phenomenon and even tougher when it is accelerated by our hands. Fortunately cutting is not always lethal. I had an amaryllis bulb at the front display table that bloomed before Christmas. Over the break the blooms died. The kids were all concerned and asked why it died. I told them it was a part of the natural process. Flowers bloom, die, drop their seeds and the cycle continues. I cut the old stalks and now a new stalk is growing and will bloom. It will be a fitting memorial for Sister III.

TIde turning

Can you find the tracks?

I went to school today - Sunday afternoon - to feed the animals and water the plants. I had been there yesterday also. There was something more than routine feeding and watering going on. On Thursday one of my students did not put the top on the snake cage tightly enough and later that day, she was gone. Several students were concerned and looking the next day. Snake three gone. I made my peace with it and told the administrators and other staff that as long as you have students handling animals things like this will happen. Either you cannot have any and have a sterile, no hands on place or you can have them and deal with the occasional consequences.

It all sounded good but I am tired of dealing with so many consequences. Like I told my students I have to come to school most everyday even on the weekends to keep the plants and animals happy. Most of the time it keeps me happy too but when my stuff gets stolen and animals disappear and plants die due to stealth in the former case and mismanagement in the later I grow weary.

When the first snake went awol, I had read about putting flour around the room to see if there was a trail the next day. We never did that and were shocked, rather my colleaugue who hates snakes, was shocked when she showed up in some plant research cabinets (that have never been fixed by the district). This time I decided to try the flour. A student was thoughtful enough to get the flour from the cafeteria during class and then come by afterschool on a Friday afternoon to remind me to spread it.

When I came to school yesterday no tracks and no Sister III at the heating pad I sat out on the floor. Today the tide turned. I noticed two sets of tracks. I was not overly surprised when I saw Sister III under the cage piece of carpet and on the heating pad since she had left a trail. I was delighted. I know how excited the kids will be tomorrow and will not have to deal with yet another disappointment.

I could not get too excited too long. Just after I fed Benita (who snarfed down 14 super mealworms) and I had just put her back in the terrarium, I heard the classroom door from the greenhouse side open. When I turned I saw an officer who had pulled a gun on me. That was a first.

Thankfully, he holstered it quickly when he saw I was not a threat. He asked about the flour and (ID of course). I showed him the tracks in the flour, all the animals and the plants. He said he wished he had a class like this in high school. He also shared about his two pet guinea pigs and left. I am glad somebody is looking out for us.

Finally I got locks on the greenhouse Friday after trying since first getting there in August 08. Greasy, the locksmith, told me he had found a black widow spider in the lock with two prisoners. I wondered what happened to the 214 black widow spider babies from our pet last year that we rescued from the bottom of the school fountain. Greasy also told me about two burmese pythons he kept for six months for a cousin. When he returned them, she called a few days later in great distress. The female had given life birth to 178 babies! Maybe I need to get two snakes and they will be as prolific as the black widow spider or Greasy's python.


Greasy poses after fixing locks and sharing a love for animals.

Maybe the tide will keep turning as I complete the Tapestry grant for $10,000 for my Mississippi Investigates Caterpillars (MIC) project.

Benita is back, iphone not - still ready to bloom where planted

I remember when my kids were sick and then all of a sudden they would bounce back and be well again. It came after love and care sometime (and medicine) and sometime it just happened anyway. With Benita it was definitely the former. For a week I brought her home and fed her chicken broth baby food with a syringe as detailed in the previous post.

And then one day on a Tuesday, she perked her head up and did that little upward eye turn. Benita was back and my heart was glad for me and for the class. The day she first ate crickets on her own after me having force feed them to her for a week along with mealworms was a good day. First it was four or five and then more.

I took her to Franklin, TN for our family Christmas and one day she had 17 meal worms and another day 12 crickets. And did I mention she poops or should I say defecates regularly also. Welcome back, Benita.

To mix the bad with the good, I realized on the last day of school before Christmas that someone got an early Christmas from my coat pocket that was hanging on Mr. Bones to keep him warm. It was during break where at least 10 or so kids come in each day to let Mojo get his exercise in his ball, to give Benita some love and to hold the Sister III, the new corn snake. I had promised one of my students and one of my science club members who is not a student that I would let them feed the snake. I sent a student after them and they came in and I showed the procedure of warming the frozen mouse and moving Sister to the feeding cage, they took on the task enthusiastically and did very well and were amazed at how she ate. Just to prove me wrong after I said she always brings the head in first, she took the tail in first. As my biology teacher in college used to say, animals and plants do not read the textbooks. Indeed. It was while I was giving kids another oportunity they would not otherwise have someone yanked my iphone.

Oh well life goes on and I would really rather have my iphone and the other experiences but if I must choose I guess I will live with teaching where cameras and iphones and even my thumbdrive from my computer easily disappear. Maybe those who don't take will receive new understandings and become lifelong learners. Maybe it is so good to be a teacher with a greenhouse and animals and some kids who want to learn that I will just put my other stuff on the line each day along with my best efforts.


One more story that keeps me going. Last year I found this beautiful plant with purple leaves in a weed patch and transplanted it to the flower bed in the front of our apartment. When we moved to a house also provided by a generous Holmes Community College I transplanted what I now learned was a shamrock into a pot. It did not fare too well in our new house along with the schefelera. I moved both to the greenhouse. The schefelera thrived immediately, The shamrock died back to nothing. I kept it in the greenhouse anyway and watered it occasionally. To my great surprise it has come back with glorious pink flowers and green stamens. Life is good. I call it the resurrection plant. Maybe some kind of resurrection of new growth will happen in some of my students and other plants and animals like with Benita and that too will give me joy.