Soon soon soon

School starts in less than four weeks. For me. School starts for me. Somewhere in my life, the cooling of September nights, and the reddening of the leaves, and the changing of the light began to work together and sound like the tuning of the orchestra. Here it comes, here it comes. The lights blink a bit. The people find their seats. The music is about to begin. Where's your program? Did you get a program? And I am eight years old - or twelve - or forty-nine. Apparently it's all the same in my sternum and in my dancing brain where the orchestra is tuning up. The new school year is about to begin.

Yesterday in the library, I worked on the summer reading book response sheets from the teen program. Although I was not meant to be reading them - the task was to make the records consistent so that we could gather statistics - I glanced at them from time to time, and all at once I began writing lesson plans in my head. I could think of three - five - ten things to do right off the bat that would encourage and help these young adults-in-the-making. Practicing with this skill or that ... putting the parts together ... tune and practice with each instrument, and then add them all together for a symphony of interaction with the wide world of Ideas and Notions and Dreams and Ambition. At this time of the year, I always think about getting a teaching credential at last, and getting my butt back into the classroom as a teacher. (But I know it passes. That classroom exists in a context, and the context is political, and this knowledge wakes me up in a hurry every time. I simply cannot attend faculty meetings. Period.)

As an aside ... I was not going to post this picture, but I guess I want to. Lesson plans come into my head in the fall, and so do bulletin boards and colored pencils and filing folders and all manner of creative organization. This year I got a very fun day at the library. I got to do the display for the teen writing contest. See what I did in the display cabinet? This was fun!Got a bit of my autumnal classroom urges out of my system this way.

But this is not the year I teach. Not in a school, and not in my living room. This is another year for my own learning. This year - yay! - I am a student again. Big plans, too. Introduction to Interdisciplinary Studies (3 credits), my first Human Studies core course, called Relationship to the Self (4 credits), and a bunch more PLA writing (2 credits for instruction, writing for 12-16 credits, depending on what I can get done). At least one CLEP test - maybe all three (9, 18, or 27 credits to transfer into my transcript). Classes on campus - yay! - and not just at home on the computer. Deeply investigative, questioning, life-changing classes and writing - yay! Oh, man. Find a seat. Quick! The music is about to start!