MWP Day 1

I'm home from and have survived the first day of the Maine Writing Project Summer Institute. As first days go it was pretty awesome. There were learning autobiographies (including mine, which was kind of awesome and has been included below), there was chatting, there was discussion. Basically, it was a good day.

I think we have a fun group of people, and I'm looking forward to getting to know them over the next month or so. I have to journal for MWP, so I'm going to go use my creative juices to that end, but haven't posted here in a while. Boston info to come as soon as I can get the time.

Here's my autobiography ... (it was a spoken presentation, complete with me tossing pebbles into a bowl of water).

Intro:
In college, a club I was in talked a lot about the ripple effect. If you drop a pebble, no matter how small, into water the ripple created will go on forever unless it’s stopped by something or joins another ripple. The direction, the speed, even size of the ripple can change in the blink of an eye. I think that life is like that. Every single second of our lives we are, being influenced by, changing because of, or learning from other people. Perhaps it isn’t always obvious that people are responsible, but at the end of the day the choices we, and others, make impact our lives, sometimes in ways that may never be understood. Sometimes in ways the never end.


First period creative writing senior year at Bangor High School changed my life. The 15 or so students in the class were all very different, but one teacher and one subject brought us together. For 40 minutes everyday nothing we wrote was ever wrong or bad or weird. We built a community with Mrs. Manhart, and no subject was left unwritten.

Our unit on memoirs was the most powerful experience of my high school career. Every piece was about my mother, and every piece helped me to let go of her a little more. I wrote about the day she died, her laugh – which I inherited – and even about how I imagined her when she was pregnant with me. Every time I wrote, I felt a little bit lighter, and a little more whole.

At the end of the unit, we put together a portfolio of our pieces. I’ll never forget what Mrs. Manhart wrote in mine. She said, “Nat, your whole collection carries a unifying theme – loss and healing and moving on.” I’m not sure any person in that classroom ever realized how much they each really helped me be able to move on. If I hadn’t felt safe, comfortable, and loved by my teacher and my peers, I’m might never have been able to process the death of my Mother completely.

Writing about and sharing my story helped me to feel whole again. I was only able to do that because our little community taught me that it’s ok, good even, to share your darkest moments with others. It’s ok because, people, given the chance, will support one another in ways we can’t even imagine. Ways that, like the unbroken ripple, continue to amaze and inspire us 7 years later.


I spent the first three semesters of college at the University of Vermont. It was one of the most difficult things I’ve ever done. My mother’s death made me feel that I needed to be away from my family to prove that I could be on my own and survive.

My time at UVM was amazing. I learned so many new things about myself, and made memories that will forever stay with me. Afternoons of watching Trading Spaces with Marty, braving the winter wind for a pint of Ben and Jerry’s, and weekly dinners at Friendly’s with my floor mates made UVM a very special to me. But, I missed home. I missed my family, and everyday it got harder.

I spent a lot of time stewing over whether or not I wanted to transfer to a school in Maine because of all of the people it would affect. I had created a family in Vermont, but I also had a family at home that I missed very much. I tried to weigh my options, and I asked for advice
from everyone I knew. One day, my Nana said something to me that has stuck with me through every major decision in my life, and is something that I have repeated to myself, and others, in times of uncertainty. She said, “Natalie, I can’t tell you what to do. You have to live with yourself a lot longer than anyone else, so you need to do what is going to make you happy in the long run.” My Nana’s advice acted as the force that changes the direction of the ripple. My direction shifted to the University of Maine at Farmington.


Jordan, Christie, and I had been inseparable senior year at UMF. Christie and I, especially. We went to concerts together, were class officers, and even went on a cruise to celebrate graduating. A relationship between Christie and Jordan a year later changed all of that. It went well for a while, but when things got tense I was put in the middle and blamed for a lot of things that weren’t my fault. I tried to make peace with both of them, and thought we were on our way to resolution. Then, two years ago in August, I got a letter in the mail.

For six typed pages, these two people, who I had loved, brought to my attention all of the things they thought I needed to work on. They saw problems in my attitude, my career, and even addressed my daily choices. I was devastated and I could hardly believe that people claiming to love me could point out all of the flaws they saw in me.

I am not perfect, and I know that there are things about myself I need to change; there are things I want to change. But I never wanted to hear about every one of them from people I loved, who were supposed to love me. To me, loving someone means loving all of them. Even the parts that drive you crazy should be embraced, because it’s all part of one package.

There are times in life when a gentle ripple becomes something bigger. Sometimes it can become something damaging. But, if you wait long enough the waters will calm and you walk away, as I did, a little stronger and wiser.


End:
As I started thinking about my life as a learner, people kept popping into my head. Friends, family, and teachers … everyone who has been in my life has taught me something. See, I believe that we, as human beings, are here for one reason. Each other. We are here to share our knowledge with one another – the good and the bad. Everything we learn is to be shared, and everything shared is to be taken in eagerly and earnestly. People, no matter how briefly they are part of our lives, affect the person we become … the person that we learn to be. Like the pebble dropped into water, the individuals with whom we surround ourselves can have an impact that never ends.

Echo Lake Adventure

So, on Saturday I needed to escape my life in Bangor. I talked to some of my friends and it was decided that we would venture to Echo Lake in Bar Harbor, do some hiking, and then go swimming. It truly was a fun day, but there were also some mishaps (i.e. me slipping as we came down the side of a mountain).

The day began with Coty, Michelle, Tony, and I meeting in Bucksport. We were very sad that the rest of our little crew (Madi and Aimee) weren't able to go. Alas, our first stop was the Dairy Port - it was Black Raspberry day and Coty needed some. After that we hit the road, complete with a new mix made by Coty that included such hits as "I want it That Way", "I want you to want me", and "The Tango Maureen". It's fabulous. We jammed all the way to the lake.

Upon arriving, we decided to climb to the summit, get hot and sweaty, and then go swimming. It was a perfect day. Not too hot, not cold, nice breeze, and sunny. The climb wasn't TOO bad, although it was unstable and rocky. There were also ladders involved at some points. We did make it to the top, sans injury, and this is what we saw ...



And this is what we looked like ...

Coty was happy, but Tony was pooped.

Michelle was perky as ever, but I was dying a little

And, missing our other friends, we took some groups shots ...



Then, after staring at the view for a while, we headed back down to go swimming. However, we thought it would be a really good idea to go down a different way. So, we did. And this path was much easier (fewer rocks and NO ladders). When we came out to the parking, however, we discovered that we were no longer at Echo Lake. So, we took yet ANOTHER path back up to the summit. This path was much easier, and I've made a mental note so that in the future we can avoid the sketchy ladders. This day, though, we were forced to head back down the same exact way we went up. And here is our journey, in photos ...


These stairs are the place where I slipped and fell. I screamed, shut my eyes really tight, my butt hit the stairs, and as soon as I stopped sliding I laughed hysterically. I think my laughter was the only reason my friends realized something happened. Tony and Michelle asked if I was ok, and Coty said, "Now is the time when you try NOT to fall down the side of a mountain." How supportive.


Michelle had to watch her back all the way down; something about the woods makes Coty nuts. No ... wait ... he's like this all the time.


Even though I'm smiling here, I seriously thought I would get a bruise on my butt from the fall, but the frigid water prevented that. Once on the beach, we did this ...

Found a mermaid-man who was really lopsided.
Shrunk the boys, and Michelle pushed them, letting them fall Matrix-style.


After rinsing ourselves off in the FREEZING lake, we changed, packed up, and headed back home. Next time, we need our other friends, but it was a very fun day!

In the absence of kids at school ....

Well, today marks the next to last day of my first year at OTHS. Despite the fact that I've been ready for school to end for well over a month, I'm a little sad. I didn't think I would be, but I am. I was going to try to list the things I would miss, and then I couldn't get past #3. I gave it up. Alas, I have a book to read for MWP, and since that is a short 2 weeks away I better get hoppin'.

Details on the Echo Lake trip to follow soon.

Seriously?

I just opened my internet browser at school on the front of my iGoogle page was this.

I spent an entire quarter last year (that's 8 weeks) studying the Holocaust with my 8th graders. We read, researched, watched, and just generally immersed ourselves in the history of this tragic time. Many of them visited that very museum, and I myself was in DC this past February. It's inconceivable to me that there are people in the world who could commit such a heinous crime.

I'm sitting in my classroom, the kids are taking their final, and I'm speechless. I'm not naive enough to think that everyone on Earth is peace-loving and tolerable, but I just can't wrap my head around that much hate. It's really, really sad.

...

I didn't write yesterday, but I didn't forget about my goal either. Rather than write a long post of words, I think I'll post some photos of Kaitlyn. She's my cousin's 4 year old daughter, and I love her. She makes me really happy, and she calls me Best Friend. So, here we go.

When she was 6 months, she came to stay with me and Nana for a few weeks. Her Mommy had gotten a burn and her Daddy had to work. I was upset at first, but fell in love right away.















Kaitlyn and I when she was about 10 months - in PA.

Kaitlyn and her new puppy, Otie.

After decorating Mommy's birthday cake.

Day 2 of said experiment.

I decided last night that in order for this to work, I'm going to need to attempt to post every day or every day at least. So, while nothing overly exciting happened today, I'm reporting on my life.

My bronchitis is nearly gone, though the mornings still bring lots of coughing and junk in my throat. The prednisone they had me take has made me super cranky at school. This afternoon, I really wasn't sure I would make it to 2:22. There were 5 extra kids in my room "helping" with posters for the car wash that the Freshman class is having (I'm their adviser so I'm lucky enough to get to plan/execute all of that). Really they were just goofing around. It was loud and way to hectic for a Friday afternoon.

I went to Wal-Mart and got the soap, buckets, and sponges for the kids. Another really exciting thing to do when you're cranky. Hopefully they make some money on this, otherwise their senior trip is going to be dismal. The $455 they have now wouldn't even get us off school property.

I have to go prepare for my cousin Casenna's birthday shin-dig. Last night her 4-year-old daughter, Kaitlyn, and I made the cake. Perhaps I'll post the photos soon. Ciao!

Hello world

Ok. So, here we go. In a few weeks I start a new journey called The Maine Writing Project. As I prepare for this, I find myself seriously missing the art of writing. Writing to inform, share, or just to kill time. Yesterday I found a portfolio from my college writing class, and was really nostalgic. So, I'm diving in head first here. I'm going to try my hand at using blogger.

I don't even know if anyone will read this blog, or find it interesting at all. Maybe. My goal at this point is to write, and to include pictures, and to tell the story of my life right now. As I looked through the pieces in the aforementioned portfolio I was sad; there are a lot of things I wrote about in that class, that I no longer remember as well. I don't want that for myself. I want to be able to remember even the small events, and I'm hoping that this will help me.

So, welcome to my world. I hope you enjoy - or at least find amusement in my ramblings and random thoughts!

And perhaps some random pictures as well!