on a downtown detroit day
discovering
beautiful little gems
in so many
unexpected places
buoying our hopes
for a city
that has not given up
and is beginning
to thrive once again
in spite of
challenges
that once seemed
insurmountable.
—
“there is no power for change greater
than a community discovering what it cares about.”
– margaret j. wheatley
at the community tree lighting
with singing and people and candles and chilly air
and then this guy snuck in
—
our hearts grow tender with childhood memories and love of kindred,
and we are better throughout the year for having,
in spirit, become a child again at christmas-time.
~laura ingalls wilder
grandbaby b and daughter deliver
—
three of us:
one daughter, h
one grandie, b
and myself,
(not the wisemen)
delivered gifts
of thanksgiving baskets
filled with donated food
provided by many,
to families
in the struggling community
around the school
where h teaches
each and every day
surprise gathering
—
and how lucky
that we were able
to show up
at one of her student’s houses
and the little one was shocked
when she opened the door
and saw her teacher, h
standing there
smiling
with a basket of things
to make her holiday special
and when this child
with so many life challenges understood
that her teacher had chosen her house to visit
she grabbed her hand and didn’t let go
and her baby sister came to join in the fun
and grandbaby b joined in the fun
another surprise
—
and on the next day of school
this little student
who didn’t have much to call her own
brought a gift
to thank her teacher, h
and told her:
“you brought me thanksgiving food so I brought you a balloon.”
and the joy of giving
just kept rolling on.
—
there are those who give with joy, and that joy is their reward.
– khalil gibran
halifax, nova scotia’s residents have recently been seeing an interesting sight: coats tied to street poles. at first, one might think that these clothes are lost, but they’ve actually been put there for a specific reason. if you look closely, there are labels attached to the jackets that read, “we’re not lost! if you are stuck out in the cold, please take me to keep warm!”
every year, tara smith-atkins works to help the homeless brave winter’s freezing temperatures. she asks the community to donate old coats and then invites local children to help her tie them to lamp posts for those in need. they also bring along scarves and mittens.
as the kids are tying outerwear to the poles, she aims to teach them an important lesson. she explained, “When we got back in the car after an hour on the street, they were all freezing and crying for the heater to be on and complaining because they were cold. and they were bundled up.” not only is the compassionate woman working to help the homeless, she’s also teaching young children the significance of what they’re doing. next year, smith-atkins hopes to include a $5 voucher in each coat pocket so the wearer can buy themselves a hot meal.
—
credits: halifolks, tara smith-atkins, amy poehler’s smart girls, ann gragert
coming home
we happened upon
yet another
surprise festival
downtown
‘dancing in the streets’
with
cellos playing rock and ballads
hot zydeco
jewish youth band
belly dancers
maypole colors
lone violinist
swing
ballroom
the horah
swaying
spinning
circling
hopping
dipping
instruments for kids to touch
drawing people into the street
for
movement
and
dance
creating
eclectic groups
new pairings
unlikely partners
happy faces
and
it was pretty sweet.
—
i think the universe is pure geometry – basically,
a beautiful shape twisting around
and dancing over space-time.
antony garrett lisi
spent a slow, sunny afternoon
in the pretty little town of
st. clair, michigan
right on the river
reading and writing
watching people and ships
come and go.
and in the
friendly coffee shop
right across from the water
run by sue
where i sat near
a retired teacher
meeting her former student
who long ago was
a 3-year old
in her class
for the first time
after many years
with photo albums
and stories
and catching up on life
and finally she got tired
and said it was time to go
and
they hugged
going their separate ways
with a promise to meet once again
before so long.
and the high school girls
gathering around a table
excited and nervous
about the coming school year
chatting and giggling
sharing stories
someone’s little sister
sat on her lap
having her hair braided
looking at her comic book
welcome
as part of the group
and learning from these girls
dreaming about what it will be like one day
to be a high school girl
and giggle and fret with your friends.
and the old man
who held the door
offering to buy a ‘drink’ for two older lady friends
who were awaiting his arrival
regaling them with tales
of his days in europe
reliving them
or perhaps living them for the first time
with his retelling.
and the young boys on the river
determined to enjoy the last days of summer
jumping in without fear and with squeals of laughter.
—–
the nice part about living in a small town
is that when you don’t know what you’re doing,
someone else does
– immanuel kant
community helpers wear many hats.
festifools brings students and community volunteers together to create
unique public art that is free and accessible to everyone by making
huge-mongous papier-mâché puppets and marching them down main
street in ann arbor in a experience that embraces and celebrates
the joy of community and uninhibited fun.
and everyone
is playing
and sharing
and finding magic
and in no time at all
the entire community
is in the street dancing
having become
a part of the parade
and the joy
is infectious
and
impossible to resist
—
if you wait for inspiration you’ll be standing on the corner after the parade is a mile down the street.
– ben nicholas
saw the listing below
in our city’s
rec and ed catalog
and
thought about
dogs
and how
they don’t really need
a class in this
it seems to come
quite naturally
to most of them
but
how great
it would be
for some
of the humans
to take this class.
—
the great pleasure of a dog
is that you may make a fool of yourself with him
and not only will he not scold you,
but he will make a fool of himself too.
– samuel butler
—
credits: youtube, ann arbor rec and ed department
went to the 4th annual water hill music fest, held the first sunday of each may
in a neighborhood filled with artists, musicians, and eccentrics of the highest order, music rules the day
founded In 2011, Paul Tinkerhess (folksman, craftsman, businessman) to spotlight the cohesive personality of the neighborhood as well as its musicians, this un-sponsored event follows only one rule: at least one member of each performing band must reside in water hill.
so excited to see my very talented carpool mate create some jazz with the neighbors
every kind of music and settings and audience members were represented
all in the front yards, back yards, decks and gardens of their homes
people of all ages were welcome to participate
friends bonded together by their music
and a community bonded together by their sounds
and many joined into the drum circle
and they were from all walks of life
and everyone joined in to support the day
and many saw music that was new to them and old to others
and people came on foot, on bike, and by car to sit and listen and take it all in
and everyone had so much fun
and the maypole dance was the perfect way to welcome in the season
“Music acts like a magic key, to which the most tightly closed heart opens.”
― Maria von Trapp
—
image credits: peaches, monte fowler, ann arbor.com
