Savoring Summer

Summer is slipping by but one of the highlights this July was designing and hosting The First Ever Kids Summer Fun Fest in our community's grandchildren. After the event, I wrote a blog titled Summer's Magic Comes Alive! and posted it on our community Facebook page and other social media sites. The Lumen5 team noticed it on their site and created a video with the same title and emailed me. The video intuitively captured parts of my writing but let me choose photos and music to accompany the words. As you might expect, Lumen 5 is an AI-powered tool that creates videos to accompany written content." Below you will find what was sent to me before the video.

Introduction: Experience the joy and excitement of a kids' summer fun fest. Watch as children enjoy hula hoops, face painting, water tattoos, and more. See the smiles and laughter as they splash in the pool and receive prizes.

Conclusion: Let the magic of summer fill your day! 

You can see the final 30-second video by clicking here.

I have used Lumen5 for several years and find the experience interesting. It does not replace the writer's creativity apparent during the writing process but quickly generates photos to accompany the text. What it does is create an initial video from the writer's post, and allow enhancements with free photos for a fun experience with video making. The process reminds me of the swimmers I saw in the pool at the Kids Summer Fun Fest. Some splashed around, others floated in a sea of kids but then there were those determined to master the stroke, dunk the ball, or dive into a clear spot. Below is another digital tech-driven image poem created with Canva using free photos found at the Unsplash and Canva sites.

Taking the advice of William Shakespeare, "Summer's lease hath all too short a date", I plan on savoring summer right up to Labor Day.

The Poetry Friday Roundup is a teacher, author, and poet Margaret Simon's website, Reflections on the Teche. Margaret created a yummy post today about delicious homemade strawberry jam from a fellow teacher writer, Molly Hogan. There are photos and an ode to the jam. Now that is a wonderful way to savor summer.

A Slice of Bedecked In Autumn Gallery

Autumn caresses my thoughts and feelings, even when temperatures fluctuate and frost leaves its residue on plants. It is a season of light and shadows, warmth and chill, activity and gratitude. With that in mind, I invite you to take a gallery walk with me through the following, a second edition of the Bedecked In Autumn Gallery of Artistic Expressions that blends art, technology, poetry, and music from around the globe. 

🍁🍃🍂

and fall arrives!

🍁🍃🍂

Autumn shares its limelight with three months. Early September opens the season with single leaf deposits that whisper hello. 

 Photo by Ramona Behnke, 2021 Washington

"And the yellow sunflower by the brook, in autumn beauty stood." 

-William Cullen Bryant

Photo by Fran Haley (Fran's image poems can be found in the first edition of the gallery here.

🍁🍃🍂

 October whisks in and slowly paints the landscape in burnt orange and golden shades for all to admire. Shall we dance in glee?

Chris Margocs from Texas shares a ritual of "just being".

October walks offer quiet time to be inspired by the beauty of the earth,

as seen through the eyes ofTerje Akke (Estonia, 2021).

🍁🍃🍂

October closes on a spooky note. 

🍁🍃🍂

November slips into view with:

"In November, the trees are standing sticks and bones. Without their leaves, how lovely they are, spreading their arms like dancer. They know it is time to be still." - Cynthia Rylant

🍁🍃🍂

Pause for a brief interlude of your gallery walk to listen to Beautiful Autumn Songs here.

🍁🍃🍂

Not all that glitters is gold.

🍁🍃🍂

Part of my heart remains in Long Island where fall watching for me was either at a beach or park. Thanks to Laura Toledo, educator photographer, I am able to see a new place that I never visited, Connectquot State Park. 

🍁🍃🍂

CREDITS

Ramona Behnke

Alice Garza

Fran Haley

Kevin Hodgson

Robert Hamera

LauraToledo

Carol Varsalona

Jackie Yun

I hope you enjoyed the contributions shared by some of my slicer and Facebook friends. 

🍁🍃🍂

PREVIOUS AUTUMN GALLERIES

Please visit previous autumn galleries of artistic expressions that integrate the arts, technology, and poetry. Click on the titles of the underlined galleries. 

2014  -   Finding Fall

2015   -  Autumn's Palette

2016   -  Autumn Venture

2017   -  Autumn Ablaize 

2020 -  Abundant Autumn

Thank you for joining me on this gallery walk of the 2021 Autumn season. May you continue to fill your heart with gratitude for the beauty of the earth.

🍁🍃🍂

COMMENTS

Please leave a comment below or on social media so that the joy of this gallery and the work of all those who contributed can be spread throughout the world. Thank you to Aussie poet Alan J. Wright who commented on the first edition of Bedecked In Autumn Gallery with a nod to Keats.

The brilliant canvas of colour, images, and words brought the words of Keats flowing back into my conscious mind, "Season of mists and mellow fruitfulness.'"

🍁🍃🍂

I thank Two Writing Teachers for Slice of Life Tuesday where a community of educational writers shares small moments of quiet inspiration.

Please join me on Friday for the final installment of the Bedecked in Autumn Gallery.

fall's quiet moments

strewn with blankets of leaves

earth seeks repose

©CVarsalona, 2021

Photo by Terje Akke, 2021

#OneWord2021: Creativity Bursts & Connections

In a world of shifting thoughts and temperaments, words play a significant role. They hold the power to create peace or disharmony, balance, or upheaval. At the beginning of a new year or new project, a single word becomes a focal point, intentionally centering our thoughts toward future growth. 

The one word phenomenon has influenced my life journey each year since 2014. It called to my muse and invited me to venture on a new path of living toward change. This year, my one word is begin. This simple word is the light shining my way to creativity bursts and creative connections with life. With begin as a guide, I will move to Virginia soon and write a new chapter in the story of life.

On January 14, 2021, Laura Grundler and Matt Grundler, moderators of #K12ArtChat asked me to guest host their Thursday night chat. Honored to work with these dynamic and creative educators again, I opened the discussion on one word for a new year with an invitation to gather in our creative space on Twitter and to reflect on our craft and practice. I created a series of questions that would assist the participants to create one word that would impact their personal and professional life.

When the chat ended, Matt Grundler posed a question for #SlowK12ArtChat that would run throughout the week. Reflaction (Reflection with Action) - What steps will you take to create a sanctuary of thought that blends art, technology, and literacy for yourself and others? Respondents began to share their thoughts using the hashtags #SlowK12ArtChat, @SchoolArts, and @AdobeForEdu. As promised, my reflaction blended art, technology, and poetry to create a collage of inspired words and art. Please join me at my One Word 2021 Sanctuary of Thought here. 

I invite anyone who has a one word 2021 to add your digital inspiration to the One Word Sanctuary of Thought padlet here.

"Creativity is contagious, pass it on!" -  Albert Einstein  

🎨

"Art washes away from the soul the dust of everyday life. -Pablo Picasso

It's Slice of Life Tuesday.

I join the community of writers with gratitude to Two Writing Teachers for their sacred space.

CELI14: Connecting Educators on Long Island Through the Power of Twitter and Face-To-Face Conversations

Collaborative conversations energize learning lives and connect colleagues!

What can be better than meeting your virtual Twitter friends in a face-to-face environment to enjoy a day of learning? On Saturday, April 5, 2014, the learning spaces of Farmingdale Middle School were filled with a spirit of connectivity that brought Twitter friendships to life. Passionate educators, parents, and board members from New York and New Jersey met for the first Connected Educators of Long Island Meet-Up (#celi14) to engage in powerful talks linking educator to educator. With the backdrop of a springtime day, the heaviness of the long winter months lifted, and vitality to build relationships and forge friendships, a group of approximately 150+ gathered together to learn and laugh under the leadership of Dr. Bill Brennan. From the first moment of the day to the last good-by, energy and learning filled the hallways.

Launch of the NYEDCHAT/SATCHAT Live Conversation

As with most educational conferences, the list of ah hah moments mount throughout the day. The first one began during the early morning hours with the launch of a combination #nyedchat and #satchat that spanned 3148 comments from 528 people. My fellow #nyedchat moderators, Bill Brennan, Vicki Day, Blanca Duarte, Starr Sackstein, Tony Sinanis met with #satchat moderator, Bill Krakower, to discuss an engaging topic, Humor in Education. What started with a small live audience at 7:30 am grew exponentially, creating a steady buzz in the room filled with registrants greeting each other. Backchannel moderator talk and laughter were mixed with Qs, As, and comments, building momentum for a burst of ideas flying by in quick flashes on the Twitter feed. Educator-to-educator connections were made, ah hahs exchanged, and interviews with Bill Brennan, Don Gately, and Tom Whitby were mixed into the chat format. 

There were many high points of this momentous ed chat, among which was the coining of a new term, "ussies," for the collective selfie. Tying into the theme of humor in education, the moderators, Vicki Day, Banca Duarte, Billy Krakower, Starr Sackstein, Tony Sinanis, and Carol Varsalona, enjoyed a chuckle or two as they gathered for the debut of their "ussie" that was meant to equal the popularity of Ellen DeGeneres' selfie at the Oscars. Following this, Jerry Blumengarten was a featured, albeit a "virtual" guest in another version of the ussie. Needless to say, great fun was had by these connected educators.

Connect-Learn-Share-ACT

After the live combo educational chat aired, educators moved to the auditorium to be roused by a passionate keynote from Dr. Bill Brennan who then called together an esteemed panel to enlighten us further. Tweets were flying and photos snapped during the discussion, Journey of a Connected Educator: Turning Collaboration into Action.

 Memorable Tweets from

Important to inject some play and humor in classroom/schools. A smile can also go a long way in making someone's day. -Jerry Blumengarten

There are no experts. We are all learners. Educators need to live and breath learning lives. Teacher as chief learner. #Donspiration -JoEllen McCarthy

Remember...the holy grail is not the tech, but the people! Always look for ways to unleash them. -Dr. Bill Brennan

On Twitter, your title is stripped away. You are accepted for your idea, not who you are. -Tom Whitby

Internet has become the content expert. How do you access knowledge effectively, and critically is what we need to teach. -Ryan Scala

What followed throughout the day were a variety of breakout sessions that sparked the collective consciousness to act on educational issues important to them. In the session Blanca Duarte and I led, Preparing for Next Generation Learning, a group of ardent educators were given the task to create commitment statements for the days to come. With a culture of trust and collaboration established, well-crafted thoughts were designed and showcased. My own commitment to the group was a simple mix of words and images: to continue publicizing the power of Twitter ed chats, namely #nyedchat, on a national front to highlight it as the Voice of NYS Educators.

The afternoon sessions were spontaneously generated by various learners who were interested in either extending conversations from the morning sessions or branching out into new areas to explore. 

The day ended with a round-up of eduwins and the desire for more meet-ups to continue the friendships created and further the talk that linked us together. The enthusiasm in the room was infectious and spilled over into the Twittersphere. Syliva Lima, edufriend from the suburbs of Chicago tweeted out, "Standing in my laundry room mesmerized by #celi14." Angelo Truglio shared his feelings of being included in one word: "Re-energized." 

Feeling energized by the day's conversations, educators left feeling a sense of exuberance and a desire to bring back the messages of positivity and connectedness to their colleagues. 

With more endeavors like the CELI 14 Meet-up and regional collegial circles, together we can strengthen our reach to become a growing community of connected practitioners. 

In closing,  I dedicate this "found" poem that I created from the thoughts conveyed in the sessions that Blanca Duarte and I presented. It is a tribute to those passionate edulearners

 (as Angelo Truglio called all the CELI 14 attendees).

Continue to learn, connect, act, share for as Debbie Olsen said in her new blog, "Together we are better and connected we are empowered."