TOP DOWN

The blackboard was full of algebraic equations….a nightmare for many, but not for our class. I sat in the front row in 12^th grade math class and loved delving into the problems we were presented to solve. Time has made me realize what a fantastic teacher she had been. Giving us free rein to uncover the possibilities that lie within our thought processes, she corralled us into believing that math could be explorative, challenging and enlightening.

It wasn't always that way. As a 7^th, 8th and 9^th grade student I hated math and brought this hate home with me to wreak havoc on anyone who would listen. Fortunately my father would not listen, and insisted I sit down and methodically work out the problems. “I hate this”, and “I can’t do this” became my mantra. His stubbornness being stronger than mine opened a pathway to passing grades…but I still hated math class!

The first component of a great teacher should be love…in love with your students… and in love with your subject matter. When I entered 10^th grade, there she was… a loving knowledgeable teacher expecting perfection, but not demanding it…helping to see possibilities you hadn't seen before.

I thought about math on the 50^th anniversary of President John Kennedy’s assassination, because that’s where I was…in the front row in 12^th grade math class…when I heard the news over the PA system.

I don’t recall what happened after that shocking news on Nov. 22^nd 1963. Words that the President had been assassinated in Dallas, shouldn't have affected me so… since I was a Canadian girl in a Canadian school, and had never been to Dallas.

He rarely ever traveled, but he was in Dallas in 1959 on a week long certification class for heavy duty mechanics when his 7^th child was born… a son… and after 5 girls in a row, I would imagine a welcome respite from all that femininity. His joy was short lived as this new little one died of a heart abnormality just 3 days later. I wondered what thoughts came to mind when my dad heard about the death of President Kennedy in Dallas. Did he relive his own shocking news and sadness when he was in Dallas just 4 years earlier?

Both John’s are deceased now, but their legacy remains…one on the worldwide stage…and one within the family.

The tentacles of death travel in many directions... leaving many legacies behind. The gravedigger, Clifton Pollard interviewed by a young reporter named Jimmy Breslin, said it was his honor to dig JFK grave. The article is posted on the http://www.arlingtoncemetery.net/digging-grave-an-honor.htm .

I wondered about the gravediggers for the other two deaths. Did they work with perfection and love? Did they honor those they served? ... Do I?

RENAISSANCE

This page is actually a renaissance, as I have no idea where my original writing disappeared on my computer. I had to start all over again and try to pick up the pieces…I guess it’s rather funny, when you look at the meaning of the word “Renaissance.”

My granddaughter in 6^th grade is studying Latin, and loves to test me on phrases she has learned, so I decided to text her to see if she knew what Latin word was the root of the English word “Renaissance”. Being the literal girl that she is, her answer came back “no”… another reason for laughter.

From my French lessons in High School I recalled the word “Renaitre”…to be born again. The Latin origin of the word, “Renasci”… “Re” meaning back again, and “Nasci” to be born.

The word played on my mind as I passed by the Renaissance Mall…which is fairly new.  I thought about Leonardo Da Vinci and Michelangelo and remembered they were born in the mid 1400’s. The English word Renaissance came into being, after the fact, describing the period from the 14^th to 17^th centuries. I wondered when the printing press was invented… (Yes all this during the drive past the Renaissance Mall). I knew the inventor was Johannes Gutenberg, and in researching it found he invented it just before Da Vinci and Michelangelo were born. Wheels in motion… now the common man had access to treasures of information he had not dreamt about in the Dark Ages…the period just before the Renaissance.

 Past eras are defined by Historians who determine what happened long after ages have passed. It is a reflective procedure, and one I tend to think about today. I see bolder, more involved, interested, excited and energetic people of all ages making things happen… enlightenment in action. Is the internet the new printing press? Is Latin making an early comeback? Are we defining a new renaissance, or are we still ignorant of our own capabilities?

I've heard the Dark Ages described as the root of a plant, thriving in the dark until the flower presents itself to the light of day…the Renaissance. Can we have one without the other?

Relationships have to be born over and over again if they are to thrive…sometimes they are part of the “dark ages” and other times part of the “renaissance”. My extra large family makes it difficult to keep pace with all the adventures and misadventures of everyone since most live so far away. I value all the treasures that were invented to stay connected…the airplanes that brought my family up close and personal this year… the technology that gives an instant picture of those who choose to share. 

The text came in “Pregnancy redefined…Aka little miracles”, along with a photo of the newborn son of my niece and her husband. What kind of renaissance will this little one bring out in those he encounters? Will he know that he represents the beauty of the world, and all of its blessings? As I studied his face and hands…the only parts visible in a sea of white blanket he captured my heart. Will he know his Great Aunt thought he was special?

I guess he might read this one day…in time.