And the Seasons They Go Round and Round*
Source/Author: Nancy L. Spencer, Head of School
October 02, 2020
I know that the coming year will have many firsts for me, and as it is early October, I am experiencing my first Florida fall season. There is less humidity during my pre-dawn morning runs. We are deep into the alphabet for named hurricane storms. I feel like I can wear long sleeves at morning carline.
Signs of fall are all around us. I like to wander down the candy aisle of CVS and admire the colorful Halloween-themed bags of candy. Yard decorations of jack-o-lanterns and skeletons hanging on front doors have started to pop up. Pumpkin lattes, pumpkin muffins, really anything with pumpkin, appear ubiquitous at Starbucks and Dunkin Donuts. An easy conversation starter with any Experiential or Lower Schooler is to ask, “What are you going to be for Halloween?” I pose this question to them, knowing that with our modified Fall Festival, we will be providing a chance for children on campus and in the Flexible Learning Program to wear and share their costumes with each other, along with participating in other fun activities.
In the world of professional athletics, autumn means football on Sundays with kickoff at 1pm. The “Boys of October” has always referred to baseball and the World Series (Go Rays!) Who knew that this fall we would be following not only baseball, but the thrilling post-season play of the women of the WNBA, the excitement of the Stanley Cup (go Bolts!) and the drama of the NBA finals, all at the same time?
For school people, autumn has also meant the revving up of the academic year. Teachers are getting to really know their students; we are settling into routines, and looking ahead at new content to explore. For children, there is an increased comfort with their environment, acquaintances are becoming friends and the new becomes familiar. There is an energy to the fall season in schools, with an overlay of excitement and anticipation about how the year will unfold.
Yet, I have always mourned the end of summer. I am a huge fan of summer, which either makes total sense or is somewhat ironic for this lifelong educator.
The changing of seasons is also a time of reflection, as it forces the realization of the passage of time. It’s a theme used by artists, whether Vivaldi’s best known violin concertos entitled “Four Seasons” or Joni Mitchell’s “The Circle Game.” The liminal space as we adjust to a new season provides the opportunity to be grateful for what is concluding and appreciate what is yet to come. One of my favorite quotations on this topic is by American author William Dean Howells. In his novel “A Modern Instance,” an older character notes that, “it’s curious to see how anxious we are to have a thing over, it don’t much matter what it is, whether it’s summer or winter. I suppose we’d feel different if we weren’t sure there was going to be another of ‘em.”
I look forward to sharing this fall with the Shorecrest community. Another important question for the season, is candy corn considered a vegetable?
All the best,
Nancy
*Title credit to Joni Mitchell
Signs of fall are all around us. I like to wander down the candy aisle of CVS and admire the colorful Halloween-themed bags of candy. Yard decorations of jack-o-lanterns and skeletons hanging on front doors have started to pop up. Pumpkin lattes, pumpkin muffins, really anything with pumpkin, appear ubiquitous at Starbucks and Dunkin Donuts. An easy conversation starter with any Experiential or Lower Schooler is to ask, “What are you going to be for Halloween?” I pose this question to them, knowing that with our modified Fall Festival, we will be providing a chance for children on campus and in the Flexible Learning Program to wear and share their costumes with each other, along with participating in other fun activities.
In the world of professional athletics, autumn means football on Sundays with kickoff at 1pm. The “Boys of October” has always referred to baseball and the World Series (Go Rays!) Who knew that this fall we would be following not only baseball, but the thrilling post-season play of the women of the WNBA, the excitement of the Stanley Cup (go Bolts!) and the drama of the NBA finals, all at the same time?
For school people, autumn has also meant the revving up of the academic year. Teachers are getting to really know their students; we are settling into routines, and looking ahead at new content to explore. For children, there is an increased comfort with their environment, acquaintances are becoming friends and the new becomes familiar. There is an energy to the fall season in schools, with an overlay of excitement and anticipation about how the year will unfold.
Yet, I have always mourned the end of summer. I am a huge fan of summer, which either makes total sense or is somewhat ironic for this lifelong educator.
The changing of seasons is also a time of reflection, as it forces the realization of the passage of time. It’s a theme used by artists, whether Vivaldi’s best known violin concertos entitled “Four Seasons” or Joni Mitchell’s “The Circle Game.” The liminal space as we adjust to a new season provides the opportunity to be grateful for what is concluding and appreciate what is yet to come. One of my favorite quotations on this topic is by American author William Dean Howells. In his novel “A Modern Instance,” an older character notes that, “it’s curious to see how anxious we are to have a thing over, it don’t much matter what it is, whether it’s summer or winter. I suppose we’d feel different if we weren’t sure there was going to be another of ‘em.”
I look forward to sharing this fall with the Shorecrest community. Another important question for the season, is candy corn considered a vegetable?
All the best,
Nancy
*Title credit to Joni Mitchell
