The Writing on the Wall

This year, the winner for Best Short Film at the Nyack Film Festival was “Writing on the Wall” by filmmaker Rob Barrett and singer/songwriter Sam Leopold. The film features footage of refugees crossing deserts, mountains, and seas, children clinging to their parents or to a few precious belongings. The topic is painfully current, and yet, as Sam will tell you – the writing has been on the wall for a very long time. His song, written nearly twenty years ago was prescient. At the time, few saw the problem of refugees coming on as hard and fast as is now happening.

Fifteen years after the release of the song, filmmaker Rob Barrett heard it and proposed the making of a short film based on the song. Sam agreed and they launched into the project without waiting to find investors. Over the next two years, local artists, activists, and inspired individuals from far and wide, participated in the project. A local documentarian and activist, Hassan Oswald, who traveled to Lesvos, Greece, to witness, help, and document the travails of the Syrian refugees coming ashore provided footage that became the basis for the film. Gaining rights to other footage was not without adventure. Most notably, a Brazilian professor of geography living in Malaga, Spain, inspired by the video’s message, got on a boat and travelled to Cueta, a Spanish region located on the northern coast of Africa across from Gibraltar. Upon landing, she took a taxi to the headquarters of Faro TV, where she spoke to the manager, and received written permission for Sam and Rob to use video footage owned by the station.

 The video is not the end, however. In fact, Sam hopes it is the beginning of something larger. The writing on the wall, as we see in the video, is not just metaphorical. In the video, world-renowned Arabic calligrapher Elinor Aisha Holland, a local resident and long-time friend of Sam’s, is writing the Golden Rule in English and Arabic, as Sam writes it in Hebrew, while singing: “you can read it right to left or left to right, but you’ve got to read the writing on the wall!”

“Do unto others as you would have others do unto you.”

This literal writing on the wall is a call to action, a means by which today’s youth can create a new paradigm in dealing with humanitarian crises. It is a call to consider this simple, yet ancient principal for humanity, and to welcome world weary travelers into new lands, as has been the case since the beginning of history.

Sam Leopold has been making music professionally for decades. In addition to writing his personal music, he worked as a Music Specialist for Camp Venture, writing and making music with people with developmental disabilities. Work here included creating a rock band and writing songs that encompassed a variety of topics, including, notably, the game “connect four.” Sam began teaching music part time at Otto Specht several years ago, writing songs, having sing-alongs, and giving children an opportunity to experience a variety of instruments and their musical sounds. Sam has now joined Otto Specht full time and the students enjoy working with him and, of course, making music with him.

“Writing on the Wall” is particularly significant for Sam. The accolades accorded to the video are great, but more important to Sam is working towards a global reminding of the Golden Rule, especially for the young people coming of age amidst so much turmoil. Sam’s hope is that “this small effort here will inspire a few young people to inspire a few more young people and perhaps together they can make some difference.”

Sam, Rob and Aisha are currently working on a Spanish version of Writing on the Wall with additional footage from Argentina, Mexico, Texas and Puerto Rico.

Parent Spotlight: Shannon Young

Stories From the Cloud Forest to Home

Since Giancarlo was diagnosed with autism at age 2, my life went off in a completely unexpected trajectory. Giancarlo is now 16 going on 17 soon. He is a wonderful young man!

When Giancarlo was a youngster, a close friend of mine with a typically developing child asked me what it was like to have a child who wasn’t developing in the way that was expected. For her, things were laid out in advance: what to expect and how to facilitate her child’s development and help him to find himself. I told her that I am also doing what I think is best to help my child to reach his potential, but that for me the system is not laid out so clearly, making for an arduous journey.

After several years of disappointment, fighting the NYC school system, we left NY for the healing space of Costa Rica’s cloud forest. I took a year’s leave of absence from work as a university English professor, and this year turned into two. We lived up in the clouds and off the grid as much as possible. There was one line of electricity threaded 200 meters through the forest with its magnificently contorted strangler fig trees (so named because they strangle the life out of the host tree) to our rickety cabin, with one sink in the kitchen, an outhouse, and outdoor shower. We loved the immersion in the natural world that occurred there, even the frequent scorpions (non deadly variety) that would come into our far from airtight cabin to escape the rains. I would sit at my computer at night, with Giancarlo in bed, researching and writing, moths flying around my head, drawn to the light of the computer screen.

I focused my attention on how to help my son’s overly sensitive system to calm and function better, cooking nourishing foods, detoxing, practicing yoga and reiki, working with reading programs, auditory integration training, etc., etc. I would shut off the breakers to the house at night so we could sleep without exposure to electromagnetic radiation. Giancarlo was schooled at the farmhouse of a talented retired school teacher expatriot from Ohio, along with other kids who didn’t fit in the public school system there. His musical talent blossomed through piano lessons with a joyful and creative classically trained pianist expat from Canada. We went regularly to the beach, a four hours’ drive down a winding rutty, gravelly road, where swimming in the ocean and walks along the beach worked their healing magic on us both.

One of the things that really helped me about living in Costa Rica was the peaceful acceptance of the vicissitudes of life so contrary to the New York high speed, high intensity attitude, where everything seems focused on achievement and beating the competition. Costa Ricans have a saying: “Pura Vida” which roughly means, relax and live life joyfully. In Costa Rica I was able to let go of much of my anxiety about all the developmental milestones that my son was not reaching, to practice more patience and acceptance of my son - and of myself with all of my hang ups.

During these two years in Costa Rica, I became involved in a project telling stories of the Costa Rican women of the cloud forest zone; incredible stories of resilient, resourceful women who grew up with no running water or electricity, practice subsistence farming, and raise their families inundated by the incredible nature of the cloud forest. At the end of these two years, however, I had to return to the US or lose my job at the University. I could not imagine putting Giancarlo back into the throes of the NYC educational system, so I made arrangements for him to stay while I traveled back and forth to the US to teach my two semesters. During this year, I arranged a sabbatical to work on the book project I had begun during my leave of absence. In this way, I was able to resettle for a time in Costa Rica while immersing myself in visits to the fascinating women of the cloud forest. The book is now completed and under review at La Universidad Nacional of Costa Rica (the Spanish version which will be translated to English for publication in the US).

During my time in Costa Rica, I wondered perpetually about becoming one of the expats, even going so far as to purchase a piece of land in a wonderful valley, sloping down from the cloud forest. But my funds were low, and I didn’t want to give up my hard earned job as a tenured university professor. As my sabbatical was drawing to a close, I heard from a friend, Mary Holland, about a small school just upstate from NYC, called the Otto Specht School, and how much she and her son, Andy, loved it. Some phone calls and a Skype interview later,  Giancarlo and I, and our little Costa Rican dog, Phoebe, returned to the US, filled with trepidation, and knowing that if it didn’t work out, we could always return to Costa Rica.

The community and the school have been a godsend for us. It amazes me that we have found such an incredible community of like-minded, soulful people in the United States. We love the Fiber Craft Studio, the Eurythmy performances, the Christian Community Church, Fridays - eating biodynamic meals and buying biodynamic produce at the Hand and Hoe, followed by evenings of live, local musicians and dinner at the Threefold Café. Most importantly, there is Otto Specht School, filled with heart, and a staff that appreciates my son and doesn’t overly problematize him. They focus on his strengths and many talents, like his music and art, not his deficits. Giancarlo loves working on the farm and wants to be a farmer.

And so, for now, we’ve let go of our life in Costa Rica - at least full-time. We still have our piece of land, and go back for extended stays each year. Now, I am working out a study abroad opportunity to bring students from my University to Costa Rica to write up oral histories of the inhabitants of the cloud forest, continuing on from my own rewarding work with the people and place that have become such a special part of my life.

Rudolf Steiner says, as quoted in this years’ yearbook: “We must look forward with absolute equanimity to everything that may come .  . . and we must think only that whatever comes is given to us by world direction full of wisdom.” After much angst and bewilderment in my parenting role, and all the twists and turns that it has brought me, this is a profound encapsulation of what I came to understand. Life brings us precisely the challenges that we need in order to learn the things we need to learn. And without these obstacles and challenges I needed to face, I never would have found this community we now call home.

Welcome Home Otis

Zachary waited at the farm, hours after school had ended, excited to be the first student to meet our newest companion. As late afternoon cast long shadows across the pastures and the cows were in their yard after evening milking, a blue Jeep, pulling a trailer, turned into the red farm-gate. Otis! The appaloosa mustang looked around cautiously as he descended the ramp, assessing the pastures, taking note of the cows across the fence. “That’s a fine looking animal!” Will, the dairy farmer, said, nodding in approval.  Zach stood near Otis’ head and offered a hand, allowing Otis to breathe him in – a horse’s equivalent of asking your name.

The next morning, Otis spent some time at the fence, eyeing his bovine neighbors, flaring his nostrils as he accustomed himself to their scent and all the other scents of the new air. The cows, equally curious, approached their side of the shared fence and watched Otis as he took graceful laps around the ring. Every few laps, Otis would halt right in front of the fence, and the cows, his awestruck spectators, would back off momentarily, startled by the unfamiliar creature. Later, all of the Otto Specht students gathered together to meet this new creature, who they would soon be learning and working with. A sign, painted by the students, hung from the railing of the corral, decorated with the students’ handprints and the words “Welcome Home Otis.”

Otis quickly settled into his new home, thrilled to have fresh grass, and becoming accustomed to, and even, it would seem, fond of the cows across the fence. The children gladly worked to care for the horse, mucking stalls, carrying water, and clearing undesired plants from the riding ring and debris from the paddock. Students found a sense of purpose working with Otis, which helped them brush aside other concerns and social anxieties and delve into the work. The fifth grade girls exclaimed that Mr. Bosch always knew the right jobs to give them when working with Otis. He knew who could stand mucking the stalls, and who could carry the heavy water buckets. Life lessons were also readily learned with Otis. The students could reflect upon themselves through what they learned about the horse. For example, they all learned that we do not feed Otis from our hands since he would get spoiled and then he would expect treats from us whenever he saw us and be disappointed when we didn’t have them. “What does that remind you of?” Mr. Bosch asked the third graders. “The red truck!” Ori quickly replied. “Exactly!” Mr. Bosch confirmed. “Ever since I gave you one ride in the red truck, you have asked for it every gardening class.” The third graders nodded. They understood this lesson, and look forward to many more. 

Farm and Garden: Summer Update

As the school year drew to a close, harvests and seed saving filled our last days of Farming and Gardening. The spaces cared for by our students produced hundreds of pounds of food for the Fellowship Community kitchen. Beautiful dishes of fresh salads, carrots and radishes, warm, nourishing beet greens, and earthy, deep red beets brightened the tables of members, co-workers, and guests. Students joyfully sampled the vegetables they grew and delivered them to the kitchen with the pride of real farmers.

The medicinal garden entered its second season of blooming bounty as well in the last few weeks of school. All summer long, this garden will provide a workspace for our summer program, a haven for our dear pollinators, fresh herbs for the Fellowship Community, and the makings of future healing teas, sachets, tinctures and creams to get us through the winter months.

Bees...

And teas...

Central to all of our work on the land is the ongoing work of building relationships – amongst each other, with the broader community, and with the incredible vibrancy of the farm individuality that is unique in our school life. The opportunities that present themselves, for service and learning, in the gardens and on the farm, are endless as the students make connections between caring for the earth, the animals, themselves, and each other. 

While summer students and teachers continue to care for the land throughout the summer, the seeds of next years programming, both literally and metaphorically, are already being sewn. Our seed saving program produced thousands of lettuce, beet, chard, and radish seeds for next years crops. In one greenhouse, oats, sewn to build biomass in the soil, are nearing the “milky oat stage,” when they can be harvested and dried for use in revitalizing and restorative herb teas. Plans are being made to repair another one of our greenhouses in the fall, with new beds to build and holes to patch, but for now, plants flourish in the steamy environment, which will bring a late summer harvest of tomatoes, squash, eggplants, peppers, and more. 

Milky Oats

Summer Crops

Dropping Stitches: Why We Do Handwork

“The human hand is an amazing tool. Our hands have strength, sensitivity, and memory. Using tools and making items we can use in everyday life defines us as human.” This includes knitting, crocheting, sewing, weaving and spinning.

Handwork is an important element in every Waldorf School. In addition to the reverence and wonder of what the students can create themselves, handwork promotes thinking and judgment, builds confidence, and develops patience as a handwork project can take some time from start to finish and moves the child from playing to working on a meaningful project. It also helps children to solve problems as they must notice mistakes and ways to fix them.

Handwork has a specific task within the curriculum. It awakens the creative powers which will be useful in as many ways as possible in later life and work. It helps the young child to develop a healthy imagination and helps to unfold his/her will and feeling life. What’s almost more important than the child learning to use his/her hands in a practical way is that in adult life, it will help form good judgement and balanced thinking.

In Handwork, we use mainly the right side of the brain (creativity, intuition), which helps the students crossing the “mid-line.” It requires the involvement of many skills including: body awareness, hand-eye coordination and possibly most importantly, brain communication.

At Otto Specht School, all students work with yarn which is plant dyed. It is said that colors from nature can have a positive impact on our wellbeing while working with it. These colors are more appreciated and understood than chemically dyed wool and it gives the students a reverence for the gifts nature provides. They also learn to use color in a more conscious way, working either from light to dark or from dark to light, depending on the project.

At the OSS school, most students follow the Waldorf handwork curriculum. Yet, depending on the child’s needs, the projects are adjusted and changed.

Generally, in 1st grade, the students learn how to knit, followed by crocheting in 2nd grade. Hand sewing, embroidery, weaving, knitting in the round and machine sewing will follow as the students move up the grades.

Handwork should be relaxing while at the same time involving and strengthening will activity. Each student’s completed project is the result of his or her own effort and brings satisfaction and enhanced self-esteem.

Going With the Grain: Why We Work With Wood

When a student enters the wood shop, she is welcomed into a space where she can use her hands, mind, imagination, senses of beauty and proportion, will power, and simple tools to create something beautiful.  She is invited to look forward to the pride and satisfaction that her completed project will eventually bring. She is looking forward to success.

Woodworking requires that the maker engage all of his faculties in an integrated manner to transform organic material into something beautiful and useful.  It requires purpose, patience, concentration, and commitment. Woodworking can also be fun! Social interaction is common and welcome, as long as it is not distracting or disruptive.  Tools, especially ones that are cared for and well-maintained such as the ones we use, can be both highly satisfying and dangerous, and we work within clear safety guidelines, conscious of protecting ourselves and the others around us.

When working with the students, Dr. Karnow and I suggest projects that are appropriate for the skill levels of individual children, giving them some freedom to try options that are appealing.   At any point in time, a wide variety of projects are in progress. We work with hand tools - saws, rasps, files, carving gouges, hand-planes, spoke shaves, mallets, hammers, screwdrivers, chisels, sandpaper, oils, and beeswax.  We begin with wood blanks, describing the properties of the wood, paying attention to the direction and figuring of the grain, identifying the annual rings, and examining the relative hardness, strength, and workability of the wood for a given project.  We call attention to the beauty of wood and try to impart a sense of reverence for it. Sometimes the children harvest the wood, such as felling a birch tree and sawing it into parts, allowing them to dry properly. This could become so many things, such as a beautiful garden gateway like we built last year for the Kindergarten.

Having been a teacher of high school mathematics in a Waldorf School, I observe the children in wood shop learning lessons about proportion, geometry, and numbers in ways that sink in.  Finding the center of a rectangular board using diagonal lines, adding fractional numbers using two rulers side-by-side, forming curves, counting the strokes of a saw rhythmically by units, twos, threes, etc., are some of the many ways in which the students integrate knowledge that they will carry forward into the classroom and beyond. 

Moral lessons happen too, without the need to lecture.  “Good enough” is not part of a good woodworker’s vocabulary.  A right angle is precisely 90 degrees. Corner mortices don’t work unless the complementary angles are exact.  Measurement must be correct. Cuts must conform to careful measurement. Design needs to be informed by the skills of the maker, the properties of the material, and principles like integrity, simplicity, and grace.  Each action has a consequence. When wood is removed it cannot be replaced. Mistakes inevitably happen and solutions need to be found without compromising the integrity of the finished product. “Good,” “true,” and “beautiful” are common words in a woodworker’s vocabulary.  

Woodworking is about striving.

Farm and Garden: Spring Update

Although there is still a nip in the air and snow on the ground, the classes working in our greenhouses are anticipating spring! Several of our plants have been left to set seed for next year, including radishes and lettuce. Even in the depths of winter we were able to sell some of our beautiful rainbow chard at the Hand and Hoe, bringing in $50 to support our farm and garden programming.

While academic skills are practiced in a very concrete way within the garden - counting, measuring, and so forth, it is also important to highlight some of the other capacities we nourish in this setting; forward-thinking, confidence, and hope. Some of the students have begun to think ahead a couple of seasons in order to prepare for what is coming in the future in our gardening curriculum. This term, the High School verse speaks of the hope that comes from performing tasks with a vision in mind. They can ground this in the reality of having grown almost 100% of our crops this year from our own seed. The students feel a sense of assuredness and confidence in watching this years' plants send up tall stalks destined to flower and set seed. Growing food for the community gives us hope as we watch the cycle of nature in the turning seasons and see dinner plates brightly colored with food we have grown all throughout the year.

There are many other things that students are looking forward to on the farm as well. Flats are being filled with soil for seeding brightly colored flowers such as cosmos, zinnias, and sunflowers. Young lettuces and herbs are sprouting, and the earth's gradual thaw is allowing us to plant grassy walkways for summer strolls amongst the flowers. Of course, we are all excitedly anticipating Otis' arrival later this Spring and have been preparing the space for him. The riding ring is being cleared of rocks and debris, the stable is cleared, a proper floor of mats laid down, and stalls are being built in the coming weeks!

To celebrate and support our fantastic outdoor education and farming programs, please attend our Spring Farm Faire!

April 14th, 10am - 4pm at the

Fellowship Community Hand and Hoe

241 Hungry Hollow Rd., Chestnut Ridge, NY 10977

In Our Words

When our students discover that they are writers, a whole world is unlocked within them. Our work as educators is to give them the keys. The main lesson teachers and our reading and writing specialist, Elizabeth Harriman, work to remove obstacles and anxieties and provide students with tools and guidance along the way.

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student writings

Elementary School Poetry

The Sweetness of Syrup

by the Third Grade

Maple syrup is sweet.

You can even use it with meat.

It's sticky as glue,

It's not blue.

The sap is boiled all the way,

Sometimes it takes all day.

It is sweet and sticky,

Maple syrup makes you very licky!

In the Forest

by Shelby Yager, Grade 5

A forest is a splatter of paint, simple, yet expressive.

A forest is a glistening gem, precious and unique.

A forest is a faded shirt, ordinary yet extraordinary.

A forest is an aromatic vase, full of the most delicate roses.

A forest is a whisper, it’s an icicle, it’s a song.

A forest is an exclusive club, special and divine.

A forest is a cushy pillow, comforting and welcoming.

When I walk into a forest, straightaway, nature’s song is sung.

As a blue bird flies by I think:

A forest is the place that I really love to be.

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Middle School Short Stories

In this assignment, the middle school students were told about a person at one moment in his life. It was up to them to imagine his story before and after. Below, are the introductions to each of their stories.

Zachary Pace

Vouk sat down on a dormitory bench with a coffee in one hand and an intermediate Chinese book in the other. He had come all the way from Yugoslavia to China to get his Master’s Degree in Chinese. He missed his family. He remembered how his sister had thrown her arms around him like a bear, begging him to stay, while his father reassured her. He remembered his mother wishing him good luck, and best of all, his cat rubbing and purring against his legs. He smiled to himself. These memories comforted him. He bent over and took up the newspaper, scanning through it quickly. He didn’t know what he was looking for but he had a feeling something he needed to know, something important, was in it. As soon as he saw the headline, his mouth turned dry as a desert. He was afraid but he began to read the article. The first few words said, “ Yugoslavia at War.” He stopped in shock. What was he going to do? Should he stay and become a citizen of China or go and try to save his family? 

Jaisaiah (JJ) Savage

Hello, my name is Yugo and this is my story. I was born and raised in Yugoslavia, in a small village that looked like a strip mall, with vendors everywhere. I lived in a small house with my mom and my sister, Mai. Mai was five years younger than me. She was cute like a rabbit, goofy, and sometimes annoying, but I still loved her. Since mom was usually out working, we only had each other. Sometimes mom would come back really late so I would have to tuck in Mai myself. Mom would act like everything was ok, but I could see she was suffering. Whenever she came home late she would give Mai and me treats from the market. She was a kind, hard working, and strong woman. Now, you may be wondering about my dad . . . 

Masai Marchan

There was a time long ago when there was a country called Yugoslavia. In it loved a boy named Kai. He lived in a very rich town. He never had to worry about money. Kai went to a prestigious school - a smart boy indeed. One day he was walking home and he got a letter. It was a scholarship to the University of Shing. He was so excited that he ran into the living room and told his mom the good news. She was proud of his accomplishment so she bought tickets to Beijing. Right away, they started packing for the move. The big move was only a week away. Kai said he was so excited, he could not stand it.

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High School Poetry

Freedom – Oppression 1

By Kesshem Williams, Grade 10

Cold an untold hold

on your body but your

mind is free but physically

you have been stuck in the

world’s perspective see cause

as long as I can remember

I’ve never been free.

Freedom – Oppression 2

By Kesshem Williams, Grade 10

I’m trapped in a mission

with decisions that aren’t my

choices. Captured in a society

where my body is rashful

but my mind is roaring.

if I had one glimpse of

freedom I’d end my

story right there right

then cause I couldn’t be

captured again.

Untitled

By Kesshem Williams, Grade 10

scratching and pulling

at your emotions hoping

you can find happiness

again. Frustration bashing

around in your head thinking

of things you shouldn’t

have said but there’s

this warm feeling in

your chest telling to hold

your head because mistakes

are food for knowledge.

The Man Who Lived For Years

By Kaito Maekawa, Grade 10

I am a person who lived for years.

I have seen everything change over my life.

I have been to this place before.

But I used to see a beautiful sundown over the buildings.

I remember a woman that I love.

I thought I lost her during a fight.

But she managed to survive the tragedy,

and her descendant is standing before me,

singing the song that we sang together.

Us and They

By Kaito Maekawa, Grade 10

We ride on machines.

They ride on animals.

We can’t ride animals.

They can’t ride machines.

We buy food.

They hunt for food.

We don’t know how to hunt.

They don’t know how to buy.

We write words.

They write pictures.

We don’t know their pictures.

They don’t know our words.

Farm and Garden: Winter Update

Fall harvest is winding down in the fields of Duryea Farm at the Fellowship Community. Otto Specht third graders along with farm educator, Jose Romero Bosch, finished bringing in the last of the lettuce they planted earlier this fall before winter snows set in. As the weather outside turns cold, however, and the ground begins to freeze, inside the greenhouses warm temperatures and healthy soil allow us to continue growing and providing fresh produce to the members of the Fellowship Community. This fall, students threshed seeds they had saved from last year’s crops. Now, Greenhouse 2 is filled with vibrant beds of rainbow chard, radishes, and a variety of lettuces grown from these seeds. Just last week, high school and middle school students planted over 300 more radishes and 125 more lettuces, which will be greatly enjoyed at midwinter meals.

For our school, winter is not a time of barrenness and indoor days. As greenhouses continue to produce fresh food, last year’s harvests from our Therapeutic herb garden are being used to create products that will help keep us healthy all year. Students have made sachets of fragrant, healing herbs and balms and salves with calendula and herbs. Second graders made a variety of teas from their garden and are now working to build raised beds for next year’s crops. Dr. Johnson made many blends of healing teas and was able to sell several bags at the annual Fellowship Holiday Fair while still saving enough for use at the Fellowship.

Through the cycle of seasons, our students learn and develop skills that connect them to each other and to the natural world, that foster connections to other academic lessons, and that provides nourishing food for the greater community. As the warmth of summer lives on deep inside the earth while the outside is barren and still, we offer gratitude that we are able to be a part of the cycle of the year through our outdoor and agricultural education. 

The Outdoor Classroom

We cross the creek with its melancholy meander or cheerful gurgling; up the hill and through fields, now browning, singed from frost - past the great, old oak whose leaves, curled, stiff, and brown, hang on with determination, long past the baring of maple, walnut, or poplar.  Where did the acorns go that pelted the ground last week? The chattering squirrels, scolding us for stopping too long by the oak have them hidden away for winter. Some they will forget and new oak trees will grow. From here we turn into the woods towards Indian Rock, where we stop to climb or rest before continuing on to further fields, the fields where the cows came to graze in the early fall.  Familiarity has changed these places, made them ours. We know them - even when the leaves are gone, and nothing remains but the unclothed structure of our landscape.

Outdoors, in forests and fields, our lessons are ever-present. They do not dwell in the realm of theory and abstraction. The children remain awake to each other and to their surroundings. They problem solve, help each other, and follow along – not simply because the teacher has created a set of instructions, but because the group is moving, because the water below is wet, because something else is around the next bend. One student, jovial and animated, leads the others in trail songs. Even the melancholy, hard to move middle schooler joins in the song as he helps another student, less agile, less sure of herself, across the creek. Students begin to open up, to breathe more easily, to quiet the chatter. Under the canopy of leaves, one student, often holding her arms close to herself, opens them wide and, looking upwards, twirls with the falling leaves. Some students fly through the forest, seamlessly hurtling fallen trees, while others choose their footing carefully along the path. When a band of deer comes in sight, we all stop in silence, watching them pass as though witnessing a magical spectacle. And we were – but the spectacle the deer were witnessing was just as magical; the unstrained silence of a group of students, forgetting their differences, unhindered by their challenges.

In Their Words: 

"This week the weather became cool. Now that it's sunny I like to play outside and go hiking. The leaves are changing colors and falling from the trees. The geese are flying north. It's good weather for weeding and harvesting." Giancarlo Young, 16