Wednesday, September 02, 2015

night work

I woke up in the middle of the night thinking about boxes, and so in the wood shop, I made some. Black Elk talked about how one's dreams energize one's life, and that by acting out what we dream, power is drawn into our lives from the universal mind.

In my dreams, I had some trouble crystalizing what I was to make, so in real life, I made two designs and invite your comments.

The one at the left seems to reflect a classic Chinese design motif. The one to the right more classic modern, and might trace its design origins to Danish furniture craftsmanship. Both use the same router bits, with the initial molding being identical, and their difference comes from the molding being flipped.  What's right side up in one is upside down in the other. Ironically, the one at left appears larger than the one at right, even though they are exactly the same size.

Time magazine this week named a variety of things that schools could do to make themselves better for kids. One was mandatory recess at all ages.

Recess is like dream time, and power is drawn from detachment. How are we to know who we are and what interests us when we are overwhelmed by a constant stream of lessons in which we find little or no relevance to our own lives?

The reason I wake up in the night thinking about boxes is that I am passionate about making things from wood. Recess is not just about play. It IS a time in which materials are processed on neutral ground.

Some mornings lately, I've been finding it more difficult to write in the blog. Some say I write too much. But I insist that we come to our senses about how children are taught, and what they are to be taught. Those nincompoops who came up with the notion that we would live in an "information age," and have a "service economy" in which all things would be made in China should be called out and embarrassed for their stupidity. The control of American education should be wrested from their unskilled hands. Take sides and join me in revolution.

Dream, make, fix, create, and encourage others to do likewise.

2 comments:

  1. Go Doug Go. It appears that everything you do makes a difference in someone else's life. You give freely. Whatever you do, don't stop writing.

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