Gratitude List:
1. Russet, ochre, olive, sienna, onyx, taupe, orange, crimson, burgundy, umber, golden.  I think I just wrote an accidental poem there.  I love these colors and their names.  The maple trees are on fire.  The oaks are less showy, but just as rich in hue and shine.
2. Shine.  Even in yesterday’s drizzle, there was a shine and a brightness to the air.  Morning light in my classroom is almost unbearable, it is so exquisitely focused.  Afternoon light skates in like a stone being skipped off a pond, sparkling in at an angle.
3. Shine.  Even when they’re quiet or moody, there is a shine and a brightness to my students.  With the right topic and questions, they can become incredibly focused.  They sparkle, finding angles and shades of meanings in the finest of details.
4. Last night’s supper.  I like when a meal is so well-matched that I find myself stacking my bites: a bit of green bean, a bit of potato (make sure there’s a little of that parsley on it), and a bite of salmon patty.  Delicious.  Solid.  Nourishing.
5. I am told that this is a “screamy” band, and I have not actually heard the music, but one of my students has offered me this lyric from La Dispute: “We are not our failures.  We are only the extent to which we love.”

Today, let’s be love.  Let’s shine love like autumn light.  Let’s radiate all the colors of love.  May we walk in Beauty and in Love!