Tag Archives: community

Apr24

bookstock.

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spent a late afternoon 

browsing through this collection of

used books of all sorts

went home with unexpected treasures

and things to look forward to

kind of like woodstock

but without

the mud, tie dye, or music

just lots of good words.

—

The Bookstock Fund was created from the revenue of each year’s Bookstock sale and donations. Focused on enhancing literacy throughout Detroit and the metropolitan area, each year the Fund looks for community partners doing inspiring and life-changing work on the individual, family, and organizational level.

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“it is what you read when you don’t have to that determines what you will be when you can’t help it.”
― oscar wilde

Apr14

be a good one.

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something is lost or wandering.

(*question and response chain on my neighborhood website – mixed in among the recommendations for contractors, giveaways, news and upcoming events)

                                                                                                                             —
*Anyone lose a peacock? peahen?
A. C. from Crest/Washington · 8h ago
Was leaving the house a little after 11 maybe and a large peacock or peahen appeared wandering through the Kenwood backyards heading north.

P. V. from Crest/Washington · 8h ago
are you sure it wasnt a turkey?

C. G. from Dexter-Miller · 7h ago
A wild turkey has been seen on the South West Side in the last couple days.

A. C.  from Crest/Washington · 5h ago
 A friend and I were at the end of the drive way when we saw it come through the spaces between the garages and at first I thought I was really losing it because it looked like a vulture perching and then for a split second I did think it was a turkey but it was gone. I swear sometimes you never know in this neighborhood.

S. P. from Crest/Washington · 5h ago
Yes, saw the turkeys last year ( or year before ? ) walking up and around Fair Street near Glendale. I thought there used to be three of them.
J.  S.  from Dicken · 1h ago
Well. I can think of even a few turkeys who think they themselves are peacocks!

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image credits: eric carle, pinterest

Apr3

dequindre cut.

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working together on a community cleanup project at *the dequindre cut in detroit

on a day filled with helping hands

larger than life art

walkers, runners, bikers, dogs and blue skies.


*the dequindre cut greenway is an urban recreational path in downtown detroit that opened to the public in May of 2009. … formerly a grand trunk railroad line, the dequindre cut is a predominately below-street level 2 mile long greenway with separate lanes for cyclists and pedestrians. 

—

“if your support the community, they will support you.”

-jerry greenfield

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dequindre-cut, detroit riverfront conservancy

Mar25

undiscovered brothers.

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“community cannot for long feed on itself;

it can only flourish with the coming of others from beyond,

their unknown and undiscovered brothers.

-howard thurman

Mar11

“i’m a reflection of the community.” tupac shakur

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amidst the more than a million people without power days

our local library

has been opening at 6am

and closing late

acting without anyone asking

as an ad hoc community center

in order to offer

a safe and welcoming haven to all

full of

electricity and books and computers and games and story times

a friend to all ages

stay as long as you like

take as much as you need

on a morning visit

during my current nomadic existence

i sat with 2 high schoolers

an old couple

college roommates

a gaggle of 3 year olds

and a family

all here for the same reasons

a bit of respite

a cup of coffee

a bite to eat

a wealth of good company

a comfortable chair

and

an awful lot of warmth.

—–

“a library outranks any other one thing a community can do to benefit its people.

it is a never failing spring in the desert.”
― andrew carnegie

Dec23

“how many cares one loses when one decides not to be something but to be someone.” ― coco chanel

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my class was interested in learning about snow

they knew that it:

comes from up there 

falls down to the ground

is cold

tastes like peppermint 

and 

you can make stuff out of it. 

they wanted to learn about snowplows

so we invited our school’s snowplow driver

over for a visit

everyone put on their winter gear 

headed outside 

where he

showed them his truck

put on the lights 

moved the plow up and down

and 

pushed the snow around the circle

then

we invited him into our room

to ask him questions

and learn more about him

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he told the kids

to call him roger

he was very gentle and kind

he has been here for 28 years

this is his last snowplow winter

he answered every single question 

 listened to every single comment about snow

 they asked him what he does

when he’s not plowing

 they were surprised

he lives on 20 acres

has fainting goats, black swans and an aviary of 500 exotic finches

 decorates peoples houses for the holidays

is a father and grandfather 

and

a horticulturist 

who helped to create the children’s garden at our school

he is more than what they saw

when they saw him plowing the snow

now they know him as a person

now they will wave to each other

now they know how he helps our community

now they know how much more there is to his story

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 when he was finished 

and it was time

for him to go back to his work

the children gathered around him and gave him hugs

they know a good person when they meet one.

—
“i  hope I didn’t bore you too much with my life story.” – elvis presley

Oct23

pickaxe.

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—

proud to have worked really hard

with my colleagues

on this chilly fall morning

to help to make the shelter

a better place for those who need it

by helping

put their garden

to bed this fall

and

by planting

new possibilities there

for them to awaken to next spring.

Sep21

open doors.

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one day gerald mysteriously appeared

with a note and a friendly greeting

left by an unknown visitor

 and

he moved into

the fairy community at my cottage

i know they welcomed him

with open arms and open doors. 

—-

“happiness often sneaks in

through a door you didn’t know you left open.”

-john barrymore

Sep10

one from many.

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i recently made a wonderful discovery

when playing with a couple of my grandies 

at the park across the street from my house.

the people in my local community

who visit the park or live nearby 

have begun

to purposely

leave toys behind 

for any and all children to play with.

what a simple, powerful, and generous act

 what an amazing way to teach children gratitude

and

the importance

of sharing what we have

with others in the world

who may not have as much. 

—
“the essence of community, its heart and soul,

is the non-monetary exchange of value;

things we do and share because we care for others,

and for the good of the place.”

― dee hock, One from Many

Sep5

“labor gives birth to ideas.” – jim rohn

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“modern society, based as it is on the division of labor,

can be preserved only under conditions of lasting peace.”

-ludwig von mises

—

happy labor day in the usa

to all of those who labor

wherever you may be

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image credit: google images